Last month, the Minister of Roads, Hon Iddrisu Fuseini insisted that the construction of roads in the country under NDC is "unprecedented" and "phenomenal". I did not take him serious. But last Monday President John 'Me as a human Being' Mahama boasted at Yeji in Brong Ahafo rally that his administration has made the most massive investment in the road sector in our history and that NPP did very little. I sat up and wondered - Is this damn goddam President joking with us?
How can Mahama in his exalted position as President make such a claim without backing it with any evidence? Of course rally talk is the usual way NDC top dogs prefer to communicate for undeserved votes and thus resort to talking from their hats and pants without proof. No wonder Amissah Arthur dumped his much advertised 'REPLY BAWUMIA' serious lectures and rather chose to do the cheapish rally talks in reply. Fifi Kwetey's intellectual attempt of a response was hollow propagandish spew-out couched in abuse and Cantata practice.
The truth is that, the claim on roads by Mahama and his cohorts has not foundation and with the evidence at my command I aver that Mahama is a blatant liar who wants to take Ghanaians for fools and proceed to ride us like donkeys.
Here are the scientific facts. On 28th October 2016, the Minority spokesman on Roads in the person of Owusu Aduomi, who doubles as MP for Ejisu Juaben, used figures and scientific analyses to reveal the state of the roads which clearly depicted Mahama/NDC as huge waste and jokers in the road infrastructure delivery. Mr Aduomi put on the table facts from Ministry of Roads, Road Fund and World Bank documents that:
1. NPP between 2001 and 2008 expended a total of $767m on roads and related structures whilst the NDC from 2009 to mid-2015 have spent more than $4500m ($4.5 b) in the same sector.
2. Under NPP 2001 to 2008, the nation's road network size increased from 37,000 km to 67,000km (81% increase) whilst the increase under NDC 2009 to mid-2015 was 67,000 km to 72,000 km ( 7 %)
3. From 2001 to 2008, 6500 km of earth roads were paved ie asphalted or bitumen surfaced under NPP whilst comparatively from 2009 to mid-2015 only 3000 km were paved under NDC.
4. By the end of 8 years of NPP at 2008, 42% of the entire total network was in good condition. By the end of 7.5 years under NDC at mid-2015, 35% of the total network of roads was in good condition.
These official figures point out that, in road development, NDC have spent more than 6 times the amount of money in dollars which NPP spent over the same period. But NDC lags miserably behind NPP in all the indicators of road development despite all their (NDC) monkee noises about Nkrumah Circle, Kasoa interchanges, Burma Camp Road, Eastern corridor, Sawla-Fufulso Road and all that.
NDC have rather clearly made reckless expenditures covering huge frontloadings, kickbacks and overpriced projects. Mahama/NDC should have asphalted over 30,000 km of roads with the resources at their command. They just did 3,000 km which is less than half of what NPP did in the same years. The quality of the roads works is even questionable and any future administration will be contending with rehabilitating them at huge costs again. Mahama record is horrible and defies all scientific orders.
The official road development figures as above have been brilliantly revealed by a competent NPP research. The figures are staring at Ghanaians. President Mahama sought to gloss over them in a typical NDC takashie and mediocre manner and thereby blatantly distorted the facts in a grand deception of the people with his declaration that his administration has done the greatest investment on roads. Mahama rather arrogantly but gleefully splashed rotten eggs in our faces. Ghana deserves better. Why can't we say Mahama engaged in lies and fraudish behavior of the highest order by that declaration?
It's a great insult to the people for Mahama to want to be voted for again with such a record. In Europe, the horrible performance and gargantuan waste/failure in this roads sector alone will be enough to bring down a government in a true democracy. Oh Mahama! A wastage, a wreck.
Charles Agbenu
.
