Member of Parliament for Aburi/Nsawam O.B Amoah is pushing for Ghana’s parliament to peg its minimum entry requirement for fresh legislators at a First Degree. According to him, the seemingly wholesale entry approach being practiced now affects the quality of the debate in the House. Speaking to Nii Arday Clegg on the Morning Starr Tuesday, the former deputy sports minister said parliamentary work is delicate and requires a higher intellect to execute effectively. “I think there should be a minimum qualification to enter parliament. The situation where everybody just enters is not too helpful. Parliamentary work is a serious business. “Let’s start with a minimum First Degree irrespective of your background. “It shouldn’t be that because one is popular in his area then he gets the opportunity to come to the House... that is why you see people getting into the house and then they start schooling,” he stated. But his colleague Fritz Baffour who was also a guest on the show disagreed with the position. In the view of the Ablekuma South MP, it is the responsibility of political parties to scrutinize the quality of the individuals they present to the electorates. "I don’t believe that and I think it should be within the ambit of the political parties. A lot of people do not go through the mill. The political parties should be the ones to evaluate who should stand on their behalf. People like John Major didn’t have a first degree but they worked within the party structures. "The selection process has been thrown to the woods and anybody can come in, and so long as he can pay he goes through," Baffour stated. source: ghanaweb
Even to the teenage girls in the back hallways of Rancho Mirage High School Saturday afternoon, he’s a household name.
Well, his last name, anyway. Shareef O’Neal, son of future NBA Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal, still has work left to do to make even the casual basketball fan know him as more than just The Big Aristotle’s slightly shorter son. But he’s got the body, the pedigree and the time to do just that.
“I want to be able to do it all: shoot, bring the ball up, be in the post,” said the sophomore forward for the Windward Wildcats. “I know my dad has the same goal for me, too. He doesn’t want me to just be a guy in the post.”
Saturday in the first round of the MaxPreps Holiday Classic Open Division tournament, the Jonesboro Cardinals—the back-to-back defending Georgia AAAA state champs—kept O’Neal’s lanky frame at bay before cruising to a 67-49 victory.
Too often, Jonseboro sophomores Jamari Smith (6-foot-4) and Jamari Mosely (6-foot-6) managed to grab rebounds away from the outstretched finger tips of O’Neal. Sometimes O’Neal was completely out of position.
He only got on the board with two free throws in the final minute of the half—the first time he used his size to get to the line all afternoon. The pair of swishes sent the Wildcats into the locker room down 37-27.
“I don’t think we came out with the same intensity we usually do,” O’Neal said. “I could have brought more of my regular self into the game. I know we needed a lot more of that.”
The Cardinals’ sought-after swingman MJ Walker, the 6-foot-4 junior shooting guard, took over the third quarter, scoring the bulk of his game-high 25 points. Walker’s speed and shifty ball-handling skills allowed him to wiz by and around O’Neal in the paint, and his four 3-pointers allowed Jonesboro to pull away with a 56-35 lead after the third quarter.
At times, O’Neal showed an amazing resemblance to his father, whose storied NBA career includes four NBA titles, one league MVP, three NBA Finals MVP distinctions and two league scoring titles. His dunk with 5:08 left in the third quarter, sent echoes throughout the gym.
In fact, “Shareef” and “Shaquille” sound fairly similar as they’re sent booming through the speakers.
But the younger O’Neal prides himself in being everything his dad wasn’t, too.
“I do have a shot, unlike he does,” said Shareef after the game with a chuckle.
After three narrowly missed attempts earlier in the game, Shareef sunk a 3-pointer with just over two minutes left in the game with a stroke as smooth as anyone’s. He finished with 13 points, three rebounds, two assists and a block.
Shaq made just one 3-pointer during his 19 NBA seasons.
His son’s 4-of-5 free throw shooting was proof enough teams later this week and beyond won’t be employing a “hack-a-Shareef” technique any time soon.
Windward High School forward Shareef O’Neal in action against Jonesboro on Saturday at Rancho Mirage High School during the MaxPreps Holiday Classic. (Photo: Richard Lui/The Desert Sun)
The younger O’Neal said he’s tried to fashion his game after perennial NBA All-Star Kevin Durant and up-and-comer Anthony Davis after growing four inches over the past year. His confidence dribbling through the lane, shooting from beyond the arc and throwing down the occasional dunk prove it.
At the heart, O’Neal is still just a high school basketball player, not unlike the thousands flocking the Coachella Valley this week. Unlike the rest, he has a legacy that preceded him, one that kept some eyes glued to the entrance of the gym he was playing in, hoping his father might make an appearance.
That kind of pressure isn’t easy.
When his dad is able to come watch O’Neal in between his busy schedule on air with TNT, Shareef said he looks forward to the hugs from The Diesel himself, no matter what kind of game he has.
But Saturday, two high school-age girls greeted him, instead, asking for a picture. Shareef obliged, then walked of down the hallway.
“That was so cool. We may never see him again,” they whispered to each other.
But if The Little Aristotle matures and evolves like his father, look for him of a TV screen and in gyms much larger very soon.
The Ghana Police Service has transferred to Accra the seven people who were arrested in the Northern region with rifles including two AK 47s.
The seven were arrested at Dzanton Daboase near Salaga after residents raised an alarm over their activities.
The Northern regional police spokesperson ASP Ebenezer Tetteh said the suspects have been sent to Accra for further interrogation and prosecution.
They are expected to be arraigned in court on Tuesday.
According to ASP Tetteh, the police is on the heels of one other suspect who is on the run.
“We are still pursuing him,” the public relations officer told Joy FM. “While we have taken the rest to Accra, we’re intensifying our search for him.”
According to Starr News reporter Alhaji Tanko, a laptop found in the room of one of the accused persons has videos of Taliban and other terrorism related sessions.
Tanko who had the opportunity to watch some of the videos said there was a blackboard in the room and with the inscriptions on the board, it is believed that is where the group use as their training sessions.
The Taliban is an Islamic fundamentalist political movement in Afghanistan.
ASP Tetteh said the suspects are currently in police custody and yet to be charged.
Jordan Ayew has described his stunning finish for Aston Villa in the 1-1 draw with Newcastle on Saturday as one of his best goals ever. The 24-year-old has clearly been Villa’s breakaway performer in recent weeks as they struggle to beat the drop in the Premier League. Ayew rescued a point for Remi Garde’s side with a spectacular strike at St. James’ Park to draw praise from the manager and the entire sporting world. The Ghana international admits the well-controlled strike on Saturday ranks amongst his best goals thus far in his career. “I think that was one of my best goals,” the former Olympique Marseille man said after the game. Ayew, who has now raised his tally to four, keeps getting let down by Villa’s poor defending. They have not won a Premier League match since the opening day as they keep shipping in goals. Ayew, however, during this period, has recovered from a difficult start since arriving from Lorient in the summer to be the biggest performer in the side. source:ghanaweb.com
