Residents in Amanga, a community in the Bongo District of the Upper East Region, are pleading with the government to complete their abandoned CHIPS compound to be completed quickly to ensure quick and timely health care delivery in the area.
Amanga is a farming community with over 1,000 people. It is located in the northern part of Bongo, the district capital, and is surrounded by rivers. This makes it difficult for community members to access nearby communities, especially during in the rainy season.
To help address the many concerns in health within the community, the construction of a CHPS compound began in 2015. The facility was to be completed and put to use within the shortest possible time for effective health care delivery in the area. This could not be realized as it was only built to the roofing level and has since been abandoned. This has left community residents traumatized.
Atolemoo, a resident from the community said, “they came and told us that, the way we are surrounded by rivers there is a need to have a health facility here for us, and that was welcoming news. So we the community members together with our chief provided them with this land for free for the construction of the hospital a very long time ago, and it is still at the roofing level and they are not telling us anything. So we are pleading that the authorities should come back and complete it for us because we are really suffering here especially our pregnant women”.
Another female resident said, “what we are experiencing here is sad because we don’t have a clinic. We ourselves are suffering and our children are suffering and our pregnant women are worse. Some days ago, my sister who was pregnant and she was in labour in the process of going to the clinic, she unfortunately delivered in a tricycle because we were transporting her to Bongo hospital but due to delays in crossing the river, she delivered in the tricycle under very difficult circumstances. So we are in serious need of health facility here, we are appealing to the government to help us”.
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The Assembly Member for the Amanga Electoral Area, Charles Atobga stated he has always followed up at the Bongo District Assembly about the abandoned project. He said he was told that some funds had been paid to the contractor to continue with the project and was the contractor was expected to resume construction of the facility but that is yet to materialize.
But according to Mr. Atobga, when he contacted the contractor, he [the contractor] told him [the Assembly Member] that the money paid to him by the Assembly could not even cover half of the investment he made on the project hence his inability to continue with the project.
“There are difficulties our people go through here due to the abandoning of the project. We complained to the Assembly to help us we have made several reports to them about the project but we have no good response. The last time we went to them, the Assembly said it has paid the contractor with some little money to come back and continue work. But when we called the contractor, he said the amount he has kept on the project and the amount the Assembly paid to him is not even gotten to half of his investment so he will not be willing to continue putting his money there”
The Assembly Member for the Amanga electoral, Mr. Atobga, is therefore appealing to the government, the District Assembly as well as well-meaning organizations and individuals to go to their aid.
Source:A1Radioonline.Com|101.1MHZ|David Azure| Bongo Amanga|
