VOLTA REGION WILL VOTE ON FULFILLED PROMISES — GROUP (PAGE 12, JAN 27, 2011)

A GROUP called the Ho Municipal Youth Club has said the people of the Volta Region will judge and vote according to the extent to which political promises are fulfilled.
It said after a careful examination of the political and development scene, it had noticed that quite a number of unfulfilled political promises were made by successive governments and some major projects had either been discontinued or abandoned.
The club said it would act as a pressure group in the region to ensure that development projects planned for the region were executed to the letter so that the usual unfulfilled promises did not become carrots to be dangled before the people by politicians in times of elections just to solicit for votes.
This was contained in a press statement read by the Public Relations Officer of the club, Mr Evans Klutse, at a press conference in Ho yesterday.
The statement said one major water project from Sogakope through to Aflao died a natural death although the project was expected to extend potable water to the Republic of Togo.
“Right now the people along this stretch of road have no potable water except for the present pure water facility which in most cases, is not affordable and convenient to the majority of the people”, it said.
It expressed regret that the proposed Kofi Annan Centre at the old Border Guards Training Centre at Akoefe near Tanyigbe in the Ho Municipality was moved to Accra under inexplicable circumstances.
The statement said there was a promise for an airstrip for the Volta Region but remained on the drawing board, adding that the current major project which was becoming a considerable worry was the Aflao-Accra Highway, adding that “what we have noticed now is that, it was just political publicity stunt”.
It said the state of affairs in the region to a very large extent could be blamed on the successive political leadership in the region and the absence of a strong community involvement and lobby.
It, therefore, appealed to like-minded people across the political divide who were concerned about the development of the region to join hands with the club to carry the development of the region to a different level of seriousness where people appointed or who came into positions in the region committed themselves to develop it rather than enriching themselves at the expense of the majority.
The statement said the principal streets of the regional capital also needed a dual carriage which should be made asphalt as it pertained in other regional capitals, adding that this promise made by the NDC government had not yet been fulfilled but what was ongoing was the expansion and refurbishment of walkways contrary to the promise.
It called on the government to direct foreign investment into the region to establish industries to help its development, adding that the proposed university should take off without further delay.
It also called for more employment avenues for the youth and a proper sports stadium such as what pertains in other regional capitals.
In an opening remark, the Vice Chairman of the club, Mr Noble Yeasroku, said the club which was non-political was made up of responsible men and women with a singular mind for development.