Esaase-Bontefufuo Wants Assemblyman Withdrawn

Mr. Kwame Acheampong, assemblyman of Esaase-Bontefufuo in the Amansie West district has been accused of hindering development in the town.

His accusers, Nana Serwaa Akenten II, the queenmother and Nana Antwi Boasiako, the Abusuapanin said the elders of the town have petitioned the District assembly and recommended his withdrawal as a representative of the constituents from the assembly.

The assemblyman, described as disrespectful for not honouring the invitation of nananom to find a solution to an impasse, is also said to have instigated the restraint of a section of the youth from undertaking communal labour.

He is also accused of having beaten the local gong gong beater after he had seized the medium with which the community is summoned for communal activities from him.

Following this, the assemblyman is said to have taken a stand different from that of the elders and succeeded in thwarting the efforts of the elders from mobilizing the people for communal activities.

The reported attitude of Acheampong has affected the steady development of a KVIP project which is likely to attract financial support from the US Embassy.

This project comes after the community successfully supported the building of a Community Clinic financed by the Catholic Church.

Nana Serwaa Akenten deplored the impression created by the attitude of the assemblyman that the people are anti-development and that the people cannot be mobilized to contribute to any communal labour to the KVIP project.

"The communal spirit of the people is still high and that mobilizing them for any meaningful development such as the KVIP which has direct benefits to the people is not difficult," she assured.

She has therefore appealed to the US Embassy to reconsider its intention of withdrawing support for the project because of a perceived insecurity and lack of communal spirit of the people as reported in the media recently.

The embattled assemblyman has admitted that the elders of the town had petitioned the District Assembly for his withdrawal and explained that their position stems from a demand for probity and accountability by the community from the local financial committee by a section of the youth.

He said failure of the committee to render accounts of sale of community water, fines by communal labour defaulters and donations during a meeting with the people led to the restraint of the youth by some 16 suspects from undertaking communal labour the disorganization of which is being attributed to him.

He appealed to the Minister of Local Government, the regional Minister and the DCE to probe the financial management of the town to prove his innocence.