While the Upper East Region may not have benefitted fully from the government’s 1 million USD per constituency policy, the region has benefitted hugely. This is evident in the many infrastructural projects that have been begun and completed under the Infrastructure for Poverty Eradication Programme (IPEP) by the various developmental agencies; Coastal Development Authority (CODA), Middle Belt Development Authority (MBDA) and the Northern Development Authority (NDA).
This was said by the Upper East Regional Chairman of the NPP, Mr Anthony Namoo when he spoke on A1 Radio’s Day Break Upper East Show.
“There is no Constituency that boreholes sunk were less than 70. Some had over 100. Feeder roads and what have you; it was phenomenal. Now, some houses virtually have boreholes for themselves. Gone are the days when people go to fight at the boreholes because of water. Now, the boreholes have been brought because of the IPEP. It has helped a lot”.
“If everything was with the government and you do not have the ability to lobby, you do not get anything. The 1 million dollars per constituency was to ensure equitable distribution of resources for development. You can see that in the north, we will benefit more,” he said.
Mr Namoo explained that while the distribution is not up to 6 years, what has been disbursed has furthered development in the region.
“Largely, the money has been disbursed. You know, with government releases, there are always delays, but projects have been done. I am sure that if you get to NDA, or some of the MDCEs are able to take pictures of the projects, it would be easier to track. It is early days yet. The fifth year just ended. So the release may not be complete. Normally the project is done before payment, so there is some time lag”.
“The point being made is that, that idea alone meant that the constituencies were benefitting so much,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mr Namoo, also opined that while the New Patriotic Party (NPP) has committed itself to fostering the development of the region, voters in the region have continued to fail to appreciate the extent of work that has been done.
Source: A1radioonline.com|101.1MHz|Mark Kwasi Ahumah Smith|Ghana
