Members of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Bongo Constituency of the Upper East region have sent a congratulatory message to Hon. Albert Abongo on his appointment as a regional minister designate for the Upper East.

The statement signed by Communications officer of the party in the constituency Asekere Edward said Mr. Abongo is “consummate, experienced, affable, and down to earth politician who is liked by the youth, women and even members of the opposition parties.”

The statement added that the Bongo Member of Parliament’s “soft skills and tact” will lead a process of healing wounds created in the constituency during the party’s primaries.

Below is the full statement

Press Release
24/01/2016

NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC CONGRESS
BONGO CONSTITUENCY

NDC BONGO CONGRATULATES HON. ALBERT ABONGO ON HIS NOMINATION AS UPPER EAST REGIONAL MINISTER DESIGNATE

The Constituency Executive Committee and the National Democratic Congress family in the Bongo Constituency wish to congratulate our Member of Parliament, Hon. Albert Abongo on his nomination as Upper East Regional Minister designate by His Excellency President John Dramani Mahama.

He has been a key pillar in our sustained success and progress as a party in the Bongo Constituency since 2001. The party in the constituency has always received wide support interms of votes in every election since 1992, winning massively in both parliamentary and presidential elections. The announcement of his nomination was received with wide excitement across the constituency.

Hon. Abongo is consummate, experienced, affable, and down to earth politician who is liked by the youth, women and even members of the opposition parties.

His deep understanding of politics and developmental challenges of the region makes his nomination a perfect one. He is the people’s man and we see his nomination as timely in that, he has the soft skills and tact to lead the process of mending differences after our primaries that seem to exist in some selected constituencies across the region.

We have confidence and trust that Hon. Albert Abongo has the experience and skills to help resolves these differences and create an enabling environment within our great party to deliver one touch victory for His  Excellency the President and the NDC party  in the region.

The constituency chairman and the entire constituency committee on behalf of the NDC party wish him well as he goes through parliamentary vetting and approval, and declare our fullest support as he prepares to steer the affairs of the Upper East Region.

We are most grateful to his Excellency President John Dramani Mahama for the privilege and honour done onto us as a constituency by nominating our son and Member of Parliament to head the Upper East Region.

…..Signed….
Edward  Asekere
(Communications Officer, NDC )
0206866395/
0246728707

By: Joshua Asaah | A1RADIOONLINE.com | GHANA

The Bongo District Assembly has handed over a site for the construction of a 10 seater water closet toilet facility and a mechanized borehole at the Jubilee market in Bongo.  The project was left uncompleted for close to nine years and its completion will pave way for commercial activities to commence at the market.

The GH¢ 100,000.00 toilet and borehole facility when completed will enhance sanitation in the district following a high rate of open defecation in the area.

The beautiful market edifice is located near the palace of the paramount chief of Bongo and was started by the erstwhile Kuffuor administration. The market complex has 60 stores, 40 sheds, an abattoir and a day care center. The complex was abandoned since 2007 but would be fully constructed by the district assembly to increase retail space in the district.

District Chief Executive for Bongo district, Hon. Alexis Adugdaa Ayamdoo said the market when completed will serve as a central market for people in the district and neighboring Burkina Faso.

According to him, it will not only create employment to the teeming unemployed citizens in the area but would also generate income for the assembly.

Mr. Ayamdoo therefore appealed to the government through the Ministry of Trade to facilitate funding for the contractor to complete the project.

“As a district assembly what we have done is to facilitate the acquisition of the land and to ensure that we compensate the people who own the land so that the project can be taken smoothly. This is the role we have played in the construction of this facility. I must say that this project has actually delayed and we have made a number of appeals and the hope that if the honorable minister for trade and industry is listening to us we will want to plead that the last bit of resources should be released for the construction of this facility.” He stated.

Paramount Chief of Bongo traditional area, Naba Baba Salifu Lemyaarum was glad that the Bongo district assembly had taken steps to provide decent selling place for traders. Naba Lemyaarum also appealed to government to assist complete the market to meet its standards.

“This is not supposed to be the final design of the market but it is just about half of it, I will like to appeal to other government agencies, ministry of trade and ministry of local government to ensure that the market is fully completed” Naba Lemyaarum appealed.

The district assembly also handed over a 3 unit classroom block funded by Ghana Education Trust Fund (GetFund) at Tarongo Junior High and a District Assembly Common Fund (DACF) project at Bongo Soe primary ‘B’ at a cost of Gh₵ 145,000 each.

The district education planning officer, Mbela Padmore admonished teachers and community members of the beneficiary schools to take care of the facilities to ensure its maximum use and maintenance.

By: Joshua Asaah/A1radioonline.com/Ghana

Hundreds of workers today poured out on the streets of the Upper East regional capital Bolgatanga to protest against hikes in utility tariffs and petroleum prices. The demonstrators are asking for an increase in salaries or a review of the current utility and petroleum prices.

The nationwide demonstration is to compel government to reverse the tariff and petroleum price increases after talks with the Employment and Labour Ministry yielded no results. The Labour unions defied the sector minister’s plea to back down on their intended actions saying that only a reasonable reduction in the prices will make them drop an outlined road map to press home their demands.

They are also kicking against the new taxes they say have brought undue pressure on them and their families.

In Bolgatanga, the demonstrators made up of members of National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), Industrial and Commercial Workers Union, Judiciary Staff Association of Ghana, Polytechnic Workers, Taxi Drivers and individuals started at the Bolgatanga Jubilee Park. They marched through the principal streets of Bolgatanga clad in red and wielding plague cards while others hanged on the buckets of pick up vehicles and trucks.

The demonstrators ended their march at the Upper East regional coordinating council and submitted a petition to the regional minister for onward delivery to the President.

Speaking on behalf of the charged demonstrators, The President of NAGRAT in the Upper East region Mr. Ayuraboya Michael Akanvibe recalled that in December last year, the PURC and government announced steep increases in utility tariffs; electricity 59.2 percent and water-67.2 percent to which labour protested. Before the agitation could end, the Ghanaian worker woke up in the New Year to a package of astronomical increases in fuel prices ostensibly emanating from an Energy Sector Levy Act that was rushed through parliament under a certificate of urgency.

He added that organized labour complained and appealed to government to do something about the situation especially when labour was not consulted on the matter. Organized labour wrote to government and have since had series of meetings in an attempt to have an amicable settlement which ended inconclusively.

“Organized labour is left with no option but to proceed with planned nationwide actions to express our outrage and disgust of the insensitive increases in taxes, levies and the utility prices at this time of the year when workers and the average Ghanaian is at their most difficult economic ebb.” Mr. Ayuraboya said.

The actions of organized labour according to him are principally to get government to reduce the utility tariffs and to withdraw the “killer” Energy Sector Levy Act, 2015 (Act899).

He added “government raised public sector wages by a merger 10 percent but with inflation at nearly 17 percent, there is an expected 7 percent decline in public sector earnings. Organized labour is not in denial of the need for some increases in utility tariffs. However, given the current situation of Ghanaians, we firmly believe that the levels of the current increases ranging from 18-27 percent are unbearable.”

Deputy Upper East regional said Daniel Syme received the petition on behalf of the regional minister and assured that the petition will be delivered to the regional minister on his return from an official assignment. He expressed confidence that the calls of the agitated workers will be adhered to by the government.

By: Azongo Albert | A1RADIOONLINE.com | GHANA

One person has died in a mining pit at Gbani in the Talensi District of the Upper East region after he was entrapped in debris in one of the vertical mining shafts belonging to Shaanxi mining company.

Samuel Baan, 35, is said to have met his untimely death on Monday evening when he went down one of the vertical shafts to drill on a normal work schedule.

Narrating the incident to A1 Radio, public relations officer of the company Maxwel Woma said Samuel was schedule to carry out some drilling and in the course of the exercise had an accident.

Mr. Woma explained that the company uses the drilling method of mining in all its shafts and hence the deceased while drilling an upper portion of the underground enclave stood on piled up debris and it is suspected that the debris on which he stood had a void beneath it. The debris he added caved in and entrapped the deceased.

He stressed that it was a pure mining accident and the inspectorate division of the minerals commission will be investigating further to establish the real cause of the accident. He maintained that the company is employing all possible means to ensure that such accidents do not occur.

The body of the deceased has since been deposited at the Bolgatanga hospital morgue after hours of struggle to pull out the body from the debris where the body of the deceased was entrapped.

Mr. Woma hinted that the family of the deceased would be compensated according to the company’s policy.

By: Azongo Albert | A1RADIOONLINE.com | GHANA

The Association of Bolgatanga, Nangodi, Bongo and Tongo (BONABOTO) has charged the minister designate for the Upper East region Hon. Albert Abongo to exercise a high level of competence and hard work in order to break even in the development agenda of the Upper East Region.

President John Mahama on Tuesday released his first reshuffle list with Hon. Albert Abongo, Member of Parliament for Bongo getting appointed as regional minister designate for the Upper East region making him the fourth regional minister to be appointed in four years. He will replace Hon. John Zuugah Tiigah whiles Dr. Robert Baba Kuganab-Lem takes over from Daniel Syme as deputy upper east regional minister.

Speaking on A1 Radio’s Day Break Upper East Show on Tuesday, Spokesperson for BONABOTO Abopam Stanley commended the president for appointing Hon. Albert Abongo to head the region but added that so much is expected of him especially as he comes in at a time the upper east region is inundated with development challenges that demands a head on approach to deal with. He pointed out the issue of bad road network in the region, poor sanitation, defunct factories including the Pwalugu tomatoe factory and Zuarungu meat factory and matters of security in the wake of some relative peace in areas where there are some chieftaincy disputes.

According to Mr. Abopam, the regional minister designate will be held to the “balls” if he exudes some tendencies and leadership styles which characterized his tenure as Member of Parliament for over a decade.

“If he will be bringing on board his ministerial appointment the very same attitude he did carry, he and his colleagues as members of parliament, I am sure that will significantly do us no good. He must have a proper understanding of issues of this region in particular and carry in his mind that he has limited time and know that some people have raised the bar and standard. So Hon. Abongo should come with the mind that am coming to work and work well otherwise he can be rest assured that some of us are ready for him and will hold him to his balls.” Mr. Abopam said.

He noted that the incoming regional minister did not live up to expectation in his tenure as a member of parliament for Bongo but that notwithstanding, he may be able to deliver better in his new position as regional minister because of the office and influence he will hold.

Hon. Albert Abongo is currently the Chairman of parliamentary select committee on communication and has served on several other committees in parliament including works and housing committee, Subsidiary legislation, local government and the lands and forestry committee. He entered parliament in 2001 and was appointed minister for works and housing in 2009. He holds a Bsc. In Engineering and Masters in Administration from the University of Ghana.

By: Azongo Albert | A1RADIOONLINE.com | GHANA