Adopt accelerated approach to fix Upper East road network - Chief

Tongraan Kugblisong Nalebteng, the Paramount Chief of the Talensi Traditional Area, on Monday appealed to government to adopt an accelerated approach to fixing the deteriorating road network in the Upper East Region.

Tongraan, who is also a Member of the Council of State, said major roads linking the region as well as the road network in the Bolgatanga Township were in a terrible state and did not befit the town as a regional capital and could also deter investors from coming to the region.

The Paramount Chief made the appeal at a regional Town Hall Meeting in Bolgatanga, organized by the Ministry of Information in collaboration with the Upper East Regional Coordinating Council to create a platform for the citizenry to interact with government officials on the implementation of development projects.

While commending government for initiating some pro-poor policies in the region to help reduce poverty, the Paramount Chief noted that, the road network particularly those in the region’s capital were not good and urged the government to adopt a more result oriented approach to address the problem.

One major socio-economic challenge facing the progress of the Upper East Region is the issue of bad road network and notable among them is the Bolgatanga-Bawku-Pulmakom road, he said.

The road has become a tool for successive governments to use for political gains, a contract was awarded for its construction by the previous administration but had been terminated by the current government after detecting irregularities in the procurement processes leading to the award of a fresh contract.

The road, which links the region to neigbouring countries, including Burkina Faso and Togo, in addition to other roads, including the Bongo-Balungu-Namoo road, Bolgatanga-Naaga road and the Navrongo-Sandema-Fumbisi road and other feeder roads has greatly affected the development of the region.

Tongraan, who is also a former Member of Parliament for the Talensi Constituency, therefore appealed to the Ministry of Roads and Highways to prioritize roads issues in the region to attract investors, to ensure accelerated sustainable development.

The Paramount Chief further urged government, through the Ministry of Aviation, to consider the issue of the regional airport seriously, indicating that, a site was being identified and prepared for the project within the Bolgatanga Municipality.

He appealed to residents of the region to rally behind the airport project to bring development and relieve travellers of the stress of travelling to Tamale in the Northern Region to travel by air.

Mr Kojo Opong Nkrumah, Minister of Information, reiterated government’s commitment to fulfilling all of its promises to improve livelihoods of Ghanaians and described it as “delivering change, one programme at a time”, saying it was evident in the lives of Ghanaians.

He said the government had so far spent GHC14 billion to clean up the financial sector to save deposits of over one million Ghanaians.

He also indicated that government had further created 100,000 employment avenues for University graduates under the Nation Builders’ Corps (NABCO), 8,000 teachers under the double-track system of the free Senior High School programme, and that, about 54,000 health professionals would be employed by the end of 2019.