Cape Coast, June 28, GNA- Nana Ato Arthur, the Central Regional Minister, on Thursday said the Central Regional Coordinating Council (CRCC), would intensify its efforts at monitoring municipal and district assemblies in the region, to step up development.
He expressed dissatisfaction that weak internal control in some assemblies, were resulting in over expenditure, while there was the need for them to create databases to improve their revenue generation. Nana Arthur, stated these, when he presented the 'State of Affairs of the Region,' at a meeting of the re-constituted CRCC in Cape Coast, which was attended by district chief executives, heads of departments and traditional rulers.
The Regional Minister said during the first quarter of this year, the 13 assemblies in the region, spent 4,346,616,548 cedis as against 4,058,225,974 cedis spent last year.
Nana Arthur expressed worry about indiscriminate dumping of refuse leading to poor sanitary conditions in the region, and called on the assemblies to provide permanent disposal sites to ensure proper waste disposal.
He said the Regional Security Council in collaboration with the Council of Eminent Citizens was working hard to ensure peace in the Region.
Nana Arthur said the Government was committed to improving agriculture, education, health and infrastructure to facilitate development in the region.
He said some roads in the region were being repaired while work on the Kasoa-Yamoransa road was nearing completion. The Regional Minister, however, said he was disgusted at the spate of accidents on the roads and tasked the Motor Traffic and Transport Unit to intensify its efforts at checking traffic offences, especially reckless driving.
Nana Arthur said a task force was intensifying surveillance of poultry farms in the region to contain any outbreak of the Avian Influenza (bird flu).
He said the CRCC was collaborating with the German Development Service to promote good governance in the region through radio programmes.
Nana Arthur, th erefore, urged assembly members to take advantage of the opportunity to update their knowledge on local, national and international issues.
Ms. Mercy Arhin, Cape Coast Municipal Chief Executive, said 1,702 youths have been registered in the municipality out of which more than 600 have been employed, under the National Youth Employment Programme. Earlier, Justice Erasmus Gyinae, a supervising high court judge in Cape Coast, swore members of the re-constituted Council into office.