Minister for Roads and Highways, Alhaji Inusah Fuseini
The Mahama administration has asphalted close to 50 kilometres of roads in the Sekondi-Takoradi metropolis, Roads and Highways Minister, Alhaji Inusah Fuseini has said.
“That is the highest single intervention for a very long time. ... We’ve done the Fijai road, we’ve done the Agona Junction-Elubo road, we’ve done many roads in the Western Region, but admittedly, there are still roads to be done but no one can take it from the NDC and from His Excellency John Dramani Mahama that in the last three years, the development of road infrastructure in the Western Region just like across the country, has been clearly unprecedented, indeed, it’s phenomenal,” Mr Fuseini told Emefa Apawu on Class91.3FM’s 505 news programme on Wednesday, 17 August.
Responding to the current debate between the governing National Democratic Congress and the main opposition New Patriotic Party over the quality of roads in the Western Region, Mr Fuseini said: “Roads have become a very big issue because roads are important to the socio-economic development of this country, indeed, 93% of all goods and services are transported by road.”
“To say that ‘we don’t eat roads’ is to underestimate the importance of roads in the development of any country. They are very important and that’s why they have become the centre stage of the debate in this year’s elections, but I’m quite surprised that John Boadu, the acting General Secretary [of the NPP] will say they spent 10 hours to travel from Sefwi-Wiawso to Takoradi. Ten hours? I don’t know what vehicle he uses but 10 hours is way exaggerated. I returned from Sefwi-Wiawso recently and it didn’t take me four hours to go to Takarodi,” Mr Fuseini said.
The debate about roads started after NPP flag bearer, Nana Akufo-Addo, said roads in the Western Region were in terrible shape despite claims by President Mahama and the government that massive road works had been undertaken in that part of the country. Mr Mahama retorted by saying Nana Akufo-Addo might have been sleeping during his tour of the region, thus, his inability to have seen the developed road infrastructure. Mr Mahama’s response prompted a press conference by the NPP addressed by Mr Boadu, who accused the president of starting his campaign for re-election with insults. The NPP also accused the government of lying about its road projects. However, Mr Fuseini told Emefa Apawu that: “The NDC has never lied about its achievements in the road sector. … The development of road infrastructure in the Western Region is clearly unprecedented.”
