We can't transport food due to bad roads-Assemblyman

Janga (N/R), Nov. 1, GNA - The chiefs and people of Janga, a farming community in the West Mamprusi District, have appealed to the government to ensure that the contractor working on the Wawale/Janga road speed up work to facilitate transportation of food produce in the area to market centers.

They complained that since the 16-mile road was awarded to a contractor early this year, no work had yet started making it difficult for motorists to use it.

The road, which is the only one that links the community to Walewale and Tamale, gets flooded anytime it rains making it difficult to transport foodstuff to market centers. Mr Mohammed Alhassan, the Assemblyman of the Janga-Kuyisige electoral area, made this known to the GNA in an interview on Monday. He said recently, because the road was flooded due to heavy rains, the newly built polyclinic in the town could not be inaugurated by the Vice President John Dramani Mahama.

He said the situation had left many farm produce including tomatoes, okro and pepper rotting adding that the construction of the road was crucial for the nation's economy since it produces lots of cereals, vegetables and livestock. Mr Alhassan said sometimes passengers had to sleep in vehicles in the middle of the road because the vehicles could not cross some rivers and streams after heavy rains.

He said due to the bad road network, health personnel and other professionals refuse postings to the area. He also said recent heavy rains had destroyed about 600 acres of farm lands and destroyed other source of livelihood. He said the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) Zonal Officer in Janga had done damage assessment but the people are yet to receive any assistance from the government.

Mr Sulley Abudu Zakaria, the District Chief Executive of West Mamprusi, told the GNA that work would soon start on the road and explained that work had delayed due to the rains. On the refusal of health personnel and teacher's posting to the area, he said the Assembly had notified the relevant institutions to ensure that adequate officers are sent to the area. Mr. Zakaria said the district had set aside some funds to sponsor brilliant but needy students in the district to teaching and health training institutions to beef-up the inadequate health and teaching personnel in the area.