I wish you well – Bryan assures Seth Acheampong

Many view the two as brotherly rivals. But in parliament last Monday, Member of Parliament for Abetifi Constituency, Bryan Acheampong injected some cheer into the reported frosty relationship that has existed between him and his neighbouring MP, Seth Kwame Acheampong.

There have been rumours of a love-hate relationship between the two MPs, following allegations that Bryan Acheampong sponsored a candidate in the last elections to ensure Seth Acheampong’s unanticipated uprooting from Parliament.

Although both MPs have refused to comment on these rumours publicly, political shysters and hangers-on who take advantage of these feuds for political gain have made huge capital of the situation and further fueled tensions between the two Kwahu men.

During his vetting in Parliament on Monday, Mr. Seth Acheampong who has been nominated as the Eastern Regional Minister commended his colleague MP for his immense contribution to the promotion of tourism in the Kwahu area.

Answering a question on the potential of tourism in the area, he said to the admiration of Bryan Acheampong who impulsively beamed with smiles that “One of your own by virtue of his energy is driving hospital industry very well in the Kwahu area. I’m happy to announce that one of the people making that huge strife for us to open up the rock city on the rocks of the Kwahu land is bringing and promoting local domestic tourism”.

When MP for Abetifi took his turn to ask the nominee some questions, this is what transpired:

Bryan (Question): This is about Kwahu where you come from so you should know these facts in Kwahu, we have about 1/3 of the land size of the Eastern Region, yet from Antonaboma to Nkawanda, about 70% of our population drink from streams and rivers. Only less than a 30% of our roads are tarred. Herdsmen menace has been ravaging us for years. It’s come down a bit. We want a bold statement from you that when given the nod, your own backyard, you will support the traditional and political leaders to deal with the situation at hand. We want to see it as a Kwahu emergency that you are going to champion to take us out of some of the problems I have listed.

Seth Acheampong: As a son of the land if the adage, charity begins at home is anything to go by, I assure this house and this committee and by extension my people in Kwahu that the good work that my brother representing the people of Abetifi constituency started when he was a minister of state under the former administration by strengthening the cow leg operation in Kwahu. The next level of the exercise is what I echoed in an earlier answer.

Going beyond security engagement, we need to dialogue appropriately with stakeholders.

He continued: I give every assurance that where his stewardship under the previous administration pushed the progress in bringing peace and stability in the Kwahu area, I will take up from there. Additionally, we enjoyed the 3k project which has to be a long successive development by the previous administration, it is left with the distribution.

“When offered this opportunity and I become a substantive minister by the kind approval of this august house, we are going to join forces and lobby the sanitation sector so that we also enjoy potable drinking water in most of our areas. Because the Afram River is a large pool of food for us and we feed on it and I dare tell this House it’s going to be topmost on my agenda”

Bryan: I have gone through your CV, quite impressive background, you have done well for yourself. To the House, the nominee has shown the strength of character over the years that I have known him, and I have no question but to wish you well if you get the nod, we will work together to bring peace and prosperity to the Eastern Region, and Kwahu in particular. Congratulations.