By Albert Allotey
Accra, June 29, GNA – “The Our Community Focus” (OCOF), a community development organisation at Ablekuma Central Municipality in Accra has appealed to the government to pay attention to the feeder roads in the area.
Mr Ebenezer Annang, the Executive Director of OCOF made the appeal in their maiden engagement with the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Mr Frank Nkansah at a meeting organised in collaboration with the Global Dignity Forum.
The meeting was to brainstorm on how the OCOF together with the MCE and other stakeholders could embark on developmental projects in the Ablekuma Central Municipality to improve the lives of the citizenry.
Mr Annang noted that the concept of the Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies was to bring governance and development closer to the people through the assembly members of the electoral areas.
“Ablekuma Central as a community we are yet to see that. So, one will ask where our representation at the assembly is? The challenge has been lacked of resources for assembly members as we found out from the communities,” he stated.
He said, “Recently the government gave all Members of Parliament GHS 200,000 for some educational projects and as a result, GHS150,000 was allotted for the monitoring of the projects … This is about 75 per cent of the project sum.
“I wish to call on the government to set aside some money for the assembly members to actively and effectively engage their communities in developmental activities.”
Mr Nkansah in his address outlined several projects that his administration would undertake, which include job creation, security, education, health, roads and market rehabilitation, among others, to improve the living conditions of the people.
He said by doing so, the assembly would scale up its revenue mobilisation and create other avenues to get funds to implement the projects.
The MCE called on opinion and religious leaders, business institutions and individuals in the municipality to support him achieve the said objectives for the betterment of the area.
Mr Nkansah urged people whose vehicles had been removed from the roads of Abossey Okai and its environs and impounded to reach the assembly within the shortest possible time to pay penalties to clear them otherwise they would be auctioned.
He said the assembly was in consultation with stakeholders to get some place for shop owners and spare-parts dealers in the area, however he warned them to desist from using the frontage of people’s houses as their garages.
He said sanitation had been a serious concern and implored landlords to avoid the habit of connecting their sewage into the drains and that the assembly would not hesitate to arrest and prosecute those who perpetrate such acts.
Naa Addoley Ablade I, Shukura and Sempe New Town Queen Mother, who chaired the occasion called on community members to put aside partisan politics and rather collectively support in the development agenda of the assembly.
“Development projects have been delayed in Ablekuma Central simply because we allow party colours to divide us.
“Let us all come together as one people with a common purpose by rallying behind our MCE, assembly members and the assembly to push the development agenda and make it a reality,” she stated.
GNA
Edited by George-Ramsey Benamba