Assembly embarks on major facelift of Obuasi

Obuasi (Ash), Aug 19, GNA - Mr John Alexander Ackon, Obuasi Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), has announced plans by the Municipal Assembly to redevelop many old and dilapidated structures to give Obuasi a major facelift.

These include an abandoned Goil Filling Station at Boete, the old Town Hall, old library, Technical Training Centre and the UAC building. He said they had also negotiated with an investor to undertake the paving of the horsey park and the construction of a bus terminal. Mr Ackon was on Thursday inaugurating the Twumwaa Plaza, a state-of-the-art building at Tutuka, a suburb of Obuasi, funded by the National Investment Bank (NIB), Ghana, and Petro Afrique. The plaza, which has an office complex and a filling station, is the product of a public-private partnership between the assembly and the Yaw Fosu Enterprise, a private local business under a Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) agreement.

Under this, the MCE said, the investor would operate the office complex and the station for an initial period of 30 years after which the ownership would revert to the assembly. Mr Ackon said, already under the BOT arrangement, they had constructed wash rooms, gymnasium, swimming pool and stores. The Member of Parliament (MP), Mr Edward Ennin, appealed to well-to-do people in the area to establish businesses to provide employment opportunities to the people. Mr Michael Okine, Head of Banking Operations of NIB, commended Mr Yaw Ofosu, Chief Executive of the Enterprise, for his vision and encouraged the management of the facility to adopt best practices and ensure quality services. Mr Joe Acolatse, Director of Petro Afrique, said the company was aware of the resources of the area and was poised to provide fuel energy to promote business.