Resolution of Kpalime and Tongor the water problem in sight

Kpeve, July 31,GNA-The chronic water problem in the Kpalime and Tongor traditional areas in the South-Dayi district may fade into history soon. This followed the packaging of an 800,000 Ghana cedi water project unde= r the Community Water and Sanitation (CWSA) Project due for tender in August this year.

Mr Edem Asimah, Member of Parliament (MP) for South-Dayi and Member of the Board of CWSA, gave the assurance at a meeting with Chiefs and opinion leaders from the Kpeve, Kpalime and Tongor traditional areas. Mr Asimah is credited for the provision of potable water to several communities in the Volta Region when he was the Regional Manager of CSWA. The meeting was prompted by the agitation of the three traditional area= s for the resolution of their water problem, poor state of their roads and perceived political hedging in the constituency. Mr Asimah said advertisement inviting tenders for the project would be placed in the newspapers leading to the award of contracts in August this year. He said all the processes for the award of the contracts would take place in the District Assembly and witnessed by the chiefs and opinion leaders from the three traditional areas. Mr Asimah explained that the project would be awarded in three lots to ensure that the Assembly has authority over its execution. He assured that the PVC pipes for the project have already been procured.

Regarding the Todome-Dzemeni road, Mr Asimah said it would be tackled as part of the Eastern Corridor road project because of its commercial importance to the district. The Dzemeni market is the largest source of revenue to the South-Dayi district Assembly.

Revenue figures available at the Assembly showed that between January and June this year the market contributed the largest amount of revenue amounting to 37,809.13 Ghana cedis.

Speaking on behalf of the three traditional areas, Togbe Wuiah Kwesi II, Chief of Wegbe-Kpalime and Togbe Agbi Nani, Amankrado of Kpeve said several failed promises about the water project have made the people skeptical about the current one until it is started and completed. They called for fairness and equity in the allocation of development projects in the district and constituency.

They also argued that potable water supply should have been available to Kpalime and Tongor earlier as a form of compensation for having lost muc= h of their land following the construction of the Akosombo hydro electricity dam in the 1960s.

They said the neglect of Todome-Dzemeni road like the water supply problem was difficult to understand given the colossal revenues which the market generated for the Kpando District Assembly and now the South-Dayi district assembly. On the political relevance of the three traditional areas, Togbe Wuiah Kwesi said 2008 election results obtained from the Electoral Commission showed that the National Democratic Congress (NDC) polled a total of 8885 votes from Kpalime Central as against 6953 from Peki Central. "Things are becoming clear to us. We must decide the type of jersey we must wear", Togbe Agbi Nani said.