District Assemblies are not to make millionaires of members - Bishop

Yendi, (N/R), Oct. 22, GNA - The Catholic Bishop of Yendi, the Most Reverend Vincent Sowah Boi Nai has called on newly elected assembly members to be aware that the service they had decided to undertake would not make millionaires out of them.

He reminded the assembly members that in every human endeavour, especially public life, there was always risk involved and urged them to see the problems of the people as their own problems and work hard to address them.

Bishop Nai was speaking at a three-day capacity building workshop organised for 65 newly elected assembly members from the Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions under the dioceses of the Catholic Church at Yendi.

The workshop was on the theme: "Good governance and development at the local level" would help the assembly members to operate effectively at the district assembly and the sub-committee levels.

The Tamale Ecclesiastical Province Pastoral Conference (TEPPCON), a Catholic NGO dedicated to addressing the socio-spiritual, economic, cultural and political issues affecting the people of the Northern Regions organised the workshop with sponsorship from the Konrad Adenauer Foundation (KAF), a Germany NGO.

Bishop Nai said the church and the state must work together for the good of the people, pointing out that the church had made enormous contributions in different areas of development for the people of the North.

He entreated the assembly members to collaborate and support the church in its commitment to bring integral development to the people to stand for the truth and justice, and peace and dialogue to solve problems.

The Northern Regional Minister, Alhaji Mustapha Ali Idris, said the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Environment had planned to organise in-service training for all assembly members to enhance their efficiency and quality delivery.

He expressed the hope that the free and fair election in Dagbon was an indication that peace was gradually returning to the region. Alhaji Idris urged the assembly members not to abuse the confidence that the people had reposed in them but work hard to bring peace and development to the people.

Madam Agnes A. Gandaa, TEPPCON Partnership Coordinator said the workshop was aimed at helping the government to nature democracy and to bring about effective, transparency, accountable and participatory democracy at the local and national levels.

He said the assembly members would review the poverty situation in Northern Ghana and develop strategies to help reduce poverty to bring about good governance.

The TEPPCON Coordinator noted that for good governance to be realised at the district assembly level, much attention must be given to the development of strategies to reduce poverty, while also focusing on the maintenance of peace, the respect of religious and human rights as well as fighting corruption in society.

"Good governance must also have to do with cautious allocation of resources at the local and national levels and the provision of decent salaries to workers and other legitimate benefits to the people", she said.

Mr. Klaus D. Loetzer, Resident Representative of KAF said the decentralisation system required men and women who understood the political process of their communities and the decentralisation instruments, especially bye -laws and the various local government legislation. 22 Oct. 06