1999 should be declared year of renewal, Iddi

Ho (Volta Region), 21 Jan '99, --

Alhaji Seidu Iddi, Volta regional minister, has called on heads of departments, political office holders and district co- ordinating directors in the region to declare 1999 as a year of renewal and fulfilment. "We must all pledge our individual and collective commitment to ensure that 1999 marks the turning point in our region's development efforts", he said at the first ordinary meeting of the regional co-ordinating council (RCC) at Ho yesterday. Alhaji Iddi called for positive change of attitude to requests for the submission of reports from the district assemblies and departments by the RCC and sector ministries. He said failure to respond promptly to such requests has resulted in the execution of shoddy jobs by contractors. He therefore stressed the need for an effective supervisory mechanism to ensure that government investments yield the desired results.

The Regional minister expressed concern about the fall in revenue generation by district assemblies with the introduction of the common fund and called for transparency and honesty in the handling of development projects saying the local people must be involved to avoid bickering, suspicion, mistrust and power struggles which stall development.

Mr Ibn-Mamani, regional engineer of Ghana Highway Authority, said the authority will this year spend a total of 2.8 billion cedis on road maintenance in addition to road projects already under construction in the region.