DCEs must be taught how to raise money for the Assemblies - O. B. Amoah

Deputy Minister-designate for the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, Hon. Osei Bonsu Amoah, says for Ghana to derive maximum benefits from the local Assemblies, there is the need to build on the capacities of their Chief Executives, especially, those in rural communities.

According to him, it saddens him whenever District Chief Executives (DCEs) create the impression that they are waiting for the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF) to run the district when they could think outside the box to raise some revenue internally to do so.

He said whenever that happens, development at district come to a halt, a situation he noted, aggravates hunger and increases the poverty level of the people in the area.

“Some of the districts were created without what we may call economic viability but for political reasons they have to be created and some have been created. Off course if you don’t have a major activity there, it will be very difficult to get your own IGF.

But the option is create an enabling environment for investors for people to get involved in the economic activities and also to enhance the capacities of the administrators as to how to raise resources at the local level because some DCEs create the impression that they are there to wait for the Common Fund to run the district.

If you ask them what they have in mind to be able to raise their own resources, some of them don’t even seems to appreciate that they already have the capacity to do this. So we need to raise the capacities of the DCEs,” he noted.

He added “Some of the districts have gold right in front of them but they won’t go for it. Come to my constituency for instance, we have huge mansions in Aburi how many of them are approached for them to even pay their property rates?”

Hon. Amoah, who is also the NPP MP for Akuapem South made this observation, when he appeared the Appointments Committee, Thursday, for public hearing over matters relating to the Ministry he has been designated to.

Commenting further, he said districts that are not economically viable could be supported by the government through Public Private Partnership (PPP) to enable them achieve the best for their people.