Various groups of people in the upper east region on Tuesday morning gathered and marched through the principal streets of the regional capital, Bolgatanga in protest against the President’s decision to remove Dr. Ephraim Avea Nsoh from office as upper east regional minister.
President John Mahama in his latest ministerial reshuffle has appointed James Zuugah Tiigah who works with Ghana’s permanent mission to the UN to take over from Dr. Avea as upper east regional minister but this has not gone down well with various groups of people in the region.
The demonstrators, clad in red attire, marched through the principal streets of Bolgatanga, chanting various protest songs, demanding that Dr Ephraim Avea Nsoh be reinstated as Upper East Regional Minister.
The crowd numbering over one thousand was made up various groups including members of the Upper East Youth Association, the Northern Patriots For Research and Advocacy (NOPRA), market women and people from various districts of the upper east region who want Dr. Avea to stay on as Upper East Regional Minister.
They wielded placards with various inscriptions some of which read: “JM, if development is really your agenda, then let Avea stay”, “this is a killer reshuffle” and “Dr. Avea is the man this region needs”.
After one hour, the demonstration ended at the upper east regional coordinating council where one of the conveners, Bismark Adongo Ayorogo presenting a petition to the Deputy Upper East Regional Minister, Daniel Syme to be forwarded to the President, Dr. Avea by dint of his hard work had endeared himself to many people, down to even the community level. There they could not understand why he was being asked to leave office after just four months.
Mr. Ayorogo called on the president to reinstate the Dr. Avea as Upper East Regional Minister in order to restore the confidence the people of the region have in the NDC government.
Dr. Ephraim Avea Nsoh was originally appointed as Upper East Regional Minister and within a month, reassigned by the president to head the Upper West region. He then came back to upper east region when the president asked all regional ministers to return to their originally appointed regions and after barely for months, has been replaced by James Zuugah Tiigah who works with Ghana’s permanent mission to the UN.
Today’s protest march is the second since the president’s latest reshuffle was announced. Last week, NDC executives and supporters from Dr. Avea’s home constituency of Bongo protested against the Upper East Regional Minster’s removal and threatened to withdraw their loyalty to the NDC if their pleas that he be restored were not heeded to.
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By: Albert Sore | A1radioonline.com | Ghana
The people from bongo cannot force the president to reinstate man who party executive discribe as disrespectful. The president appoints and removes without recourse to anybody or persons.
I pray that the president does not give Dr. Avea any appointments to teach this people a lesson.
The president put you there, the president removed you