Paga (U/E) Nov. 4, GNA – Mr Robert Apechira Aloo, the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) Parliamentary Candidate (PC) for the Chiana-Paga Constituency in the Upper East Region says he will lobby for extension of rural electrification to communities in the Constituency not connected to the national electricity grid.
“One major thing I will look at is the rural electrification project. If you look at how it is extended in our Constituency, majority of our communities are not captured and so what I will do is to ensure that these communities are connected to the national grid.”
Speaking in an interview with the Ghana News Agency at Paga in the Kassena-Nankana West District to outline his plan for Constituents given the opportunity to represent them in Parliament, Mr Aloo said the move would benefit all sectors including the education sector.
He said extension of electricity to all communities would enhance the learning capacity of studies and pupils in the Constituency, especially at night, and help them improve their academic work and prepare them into responsible citizens of the country.
He said the advent of the Free Senior High School policy had increased enrolment numbers, adding “When these students are home, they cannot use lanterns, they will have to use electricity to study just like their colleagues in the urban areas.”
Mr Aloo, who appealed to the electorate to give him and President Akufo-Addo their mandate, said apart from enabling students in the Constituency to learn, the electricity would activate small scale businesses across the area for Constituents to earn a living.
“We can have women with stores and refrigerators to selling ‘sobolo’ or furofuro (locally prepared non-alcoholic drinks) which will put some money in their pockets and food on their tables.”
Describing himself as “One who has the people at heart,” the PC said his activities were people driven and focused on the masses, “As a Member of Parliament, one thing I will like to do, which is critical, is tackling the unemployment situation in the Constituency.”
He said majority of the populace in the area were women and youth, “So when you help empower these category of people, then you are sure that you are putting the development of the Constituency right in the hands of the very people that need it.”
Mr Aloo said once people were empowered to do their own jobs, it trickled down to the development of the Constituency, “I will offer skills training to those who are unemployed and probably have not had the opportunity of going further in their education.”
He said given the nod, he would liaise with Non-Governmental Organisations that were into supporting women and also tap into the activities of the Microfinance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC) to raise funds for women to start small businesses.
On how he intends to penetrate and capture the Chiana-Paga Constituency seat who is traditionally for the National Democratic Congress, the Banker stated that “I have penetrated already. The people over the period have longed to have a leader that can be with them and has them at heart.
“They have seen that leadership in Robert Apechira Aloo, and so they have called for the leadership, and I have started providing that leadership and that is why the people are saying that enough of the one-way voting, we are going for Robert Apechira Aloo who is with us and wants to bring change to our Constituency.”
GNA