Lawra Assembly to review revenue contract with Atomz Solution Limited

The Lawra District Assembly has expressed worry about its weak financial position and is set to review its revenue collection contractual relationship with Atomz Solution Limited.

The review of the contract will also be based on the company’s inability to deploy the Revenue Management System captured in the Revenue Collection Agreement.

The Lawra District Chief Executive (DCE) Mr. Martin Domotiere Bomba-ire, who made this known during the first ordinary meeting of the Assembly, said it was sad to note that only GHC 34,589.50 of Internally Generated Funds (IGF) have been mobilized as at July 31, 2017 representing 21 per cent of the total budget figure of GHC164,783.60 for the entire year.

This compared to the 40 per cent mobilized in 2016 over the same period showed a declining trend in IGF mobilization efforts, he said, adding that “Even though the revenue collection aspect was outsourced to Atomz Solution Limited, the company’s performance is worse compared to staff of the Assembly”.

With other funds, the DCE disclosed that the Assembly has received a total net amount of GHC 273,544.44 as common fund for the last quarter of 2016 after statutory deductions, stating that no funds have been received for the 2017 financial year.

Mr. Bomba-ire said the scenario was worse for the Persons with Disabilities share of the District Assembly Common Fund (DACF) as well as the HIV and AIDS component of the fund, as the last quarter of 2016 was yet to be released.

The funding gaps would have serious implications on the implementation of projects and programmes for the 2017 administrative year, he hinted.

On the energy front, the DCE announced to the house that the Volta River Authority (VRA) with funding from KfW of Germany would be developing a 4-Megawatts Solar Power Plant in Lawra, adding that it involved the installation of solar panels over approximately six hectares of land.

“The land, I am reliably informed has been duly acquired and work will start in earnest. This will feed into government’s policy of creating an enabling environment for renewable energy to free up power for industries”, he said.

Mr. Bomba-ire said a transformer has been procured and installed awaiting testing at Tolibri community adding that these interventions would help boost commerce, security and ultimately the educational outcomes in the district.

He commended the Center for Indigenous Knowledge and Organisational Development (CIKOD) for fully involving the Assembly in the implementation of its “Water for Resilience” project through which eight boreholes and four hand dug wells have been provided to serve the purposes of providing potable water for both domestic use and dry season gardening.

He urged other NGOs to emulate CIKOD’s example in order to promote civil society and state institutions partnership for improved service delivery.

Mr. Anthony Abaifaa Karbo, Deputy Minister for Roads and Highways, said government would construct a 200 meter bridge across the Black Volta River to facilitate trade between Ghana and Burkina Faso.