Government to ensure efficient administration at local level
Kpone/Katamanso NDC congratulates Amidu
Destooled chief appeals to supporters for calm
Area Council Chairman appeals for tolerance among opposing parties
NRP elects chairman for Ahafo Ano south
NDC to continue with development programmes
NDC names more candidates for parliamentary
election
Government to ensure efficient
administration at local level
Ho (Volta Region) 09 September 2000
Mrs. Cecilia Johnson, Minister of Local Government and Rural Development on Thursday said Government would continue to provide and develop a vibrant resource base to ensure good governance.
The Minister emphasised that government will put in place additional policy measures to enhance the decentralisation of local government reforms to promote democracy and development.
This was contained in an address read for her by Lieutenant Colonel Charles Agbenaza, Volta Regional Minister at the second ordinary meeting of the Ho District Assembly.
She therefore called for an effective and equitable human and material resource development to ensure that Ghanaians have access to political authority and development.
The Minister noted that the success of the district assemblies would depend mainly on the skills, ingenuity and commitment of people who manage the affairs of the assemblies.
She said that "virtually every district capital can boast of electricity supply, a senior secondary school, potable water, access road, telecommunication facilities and other economic and social infrastructure as a result of government's decentralisation policy".
She entreated district assemblies, town councils and unit committees to use resources allocated to them judiciously to enhance economic growth and social well being of the rural people.
The Minister said the development of the country will be facilitated if the assemblies succeed in reducing rural-urban drift, unemployment, armed robbery, HIV/AIDS, drug addiction, sanitation and environmental degradation.
The Minister said, "the attainment of a middle income status would depend on a healthy population, which has access to good sanitation facilities".
She urged unit committees, urban, town and area councils to intensify their education on revenue mobilisation, which is in consonance with the legislative instrument 1589 on revenue sharing policy.
She reminded members of the assembly to be non-partisan as stipulated in the constitution.
Captain George Nfodjo (Rtd), Ho District Chief Executive said the District received about 3.6 billion cedis between 1994 and 1999 as its share of the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF) which were used in financing infrastructure projects in the district.
He however said the amount is insufficient for the District, considering its large size and population of about 260,000 people living in 831 settlements.
Capt. Nfodjo said out of a total revenue budget of about 1.3 billion cedis, 925 million cedis was realised as at June 30, this year, as against 293 million cedis realised during the same period last year.
He complained about the low recovery rate of the Productivity Improvement and Income Generation Fund saying out of the 91.4 million cedis disbursed to 122 beneficiaries in 1999, only 19.1 million cedis was recovered.
Capt, Nfodjo therefore advised beneficiaries of the scheme to repay the loans or face the rigours of the law.
Capt. Nfodjo said about 7.5 kilometres of roads will be rehabilitated in the Ho Township and 240 streetlights will be installed.
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Kpone/Katamanso NDC congratulates Amidu
Kpone (Ashanti Region) 09 September 2000
The executive of Kpone/Katamanso constituency of the NDC has sent a message of congratulation to Mr. Martin Amidu, for getting the nod as the running mate to Professor John Evans Atta Mills, flagbearer of NDC for the forthcoming election.
A statement signed by Alhaji Anteye-Tetteh, constituency chairman, copied to the press on Friday said the choice of Mr. Amidu, a cadre of high esteem, has been accepted by all contesting candidates for that honourable position and members of the party at the grassroots.
It noted that Mr. Amidu with his charisma would give the NDC campaign team a moving spirit to help Prof. Mills to win the December 7 elections.
The statement said Mr. Amidu's choice has bridged the seeming gap between the revolutionary cadres of the PNDC era and the NDC, adding that this will bring those who broke away, back to the NDC.
It assured Prof. Mills and his running mate that "your wise choice will encourage us to intensify our political campaign, so that you can win a resounding victory in the Presidential election and vote massively for Ms. Beatrice Naa Afieye Ashong our Parliamentary candidate, to enable you to form a credible government, come January 2001".
The statement expressed its appreciation to the NDC flagbearer for giving the party supporters a good choice, who has a clean track record in government for the past two decades to settle what the sceptics thought was going to break the party.
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Destooled chief appeals to supporters for
calm
Kunsu-Wioso (Ashanti Region) 09 September 2000
Nana Boakye Acheampong, ex-chief of Kunsu-Wioso in the Ahafo Ano South district on Thursday appealed to his supporters not to do anything that would create violence due to his destoolment, but rather, remain calm for peace and stability to prevail in the town.
Nana Acheampong was addressing his supporters at his residence at Kunsu-Wioso yesterday, following a publication by a Kumasi daily that he had been arrested along with six of his supporters.
He said he had no regrets about his destoolment by both Otumfuo Osei Tutu the second, Asantehene and Hiahene of Kumasi, but leaves everything to posterity.
The ex-chief said he was not happy about the news item carried by the "pioneer" on its front page of the August eight edition headlined "violence at Wioso, ex-chief, six others arrested, two on the run.
Nana Acheampong denied that he was arrested and said such publications could only generate violence and disturb the prevailing peace in the town.
Nana Acheampong appealed to both the local and Tepa police to help create a peaceful atmosphere in the town.
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Area Council Chairman appeals for tolerance
among opposing parties
Mankranso (Ashanti Region) 09 September 2000
Mr. Kofi Atenka, Chairman of the Mankranso area council, on Thursday appealed to all citizens in the area to tolerate the views of their political opponents in the run up to the December election to ensure an incident free exercise.
Mr. Atenka was addressing executives of three political parties in the district yesterday.
The parties were the National Democratic Congress (NDC), National Reform Party (NRP) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP).
He advised the executives not to allow partisan politics to divide them and their supporters since they "are one people with a common destiny".
Mr. Atenka also cautioned the executives to advise their supporters to desist from destroying posters of other parties with dirty oil in the district.
He appealed to the police not to hesitate to report any incident between now and Election Day to the Ashanti Regional Police Commander to send reinforcement to the town to clamp down on any violence.
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NRP elects chairman for Ahafo Ano south
Mankranso (Ashanti Region) 09 September 2000
Mr. Augustine Kontoh, a farmer at Asuadei near Mankranso was on Thursday elected as Chairman of the Ahafo-Ano constituency of the National Reform Party (NRP).
The constituency executives have also nominated Mr. Bernard Kwame Bekoe, a businessman as the party's Parliamentary candidate for this year's election.
Mr. Kontoh appealed to supporters and well wishers to vote for the NRP for better management of the country's resources.
He said "the NRP is the only party which can put the nation's economy on a sound footing".
He urged supporters to adopt house-to-house campaign to win more supporters for the party.
Mr. Kontoh also appealed to the National Steering Committee to open a party office at Mankranso and provide some logistics to run the party in the constituency.
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NDC to continue with development programmes
Mpasaaso (Ashanti Region) 09 September 20000
The National Democratic Congress (NDC), will continue with its development programme of providing the people with good roads, portable water, electricity and other social amenities despite the current economic problems when voted into power for a third term.
Mr. Osei Kuffour, a businessman said this at Mpasaaso Number one, near Mankranso, when he was introduced to supporters as the NDC parliamentary candidate for Ahafo Ano South constituency in the forthcoming elections.
Mr. Kuffour said the government would soon rehabilitate Mankranso-Mpasaaso road to facilitate economic activities especially carting of cocoa and foodstuffs.
On the present economic problems facing the country, Mr. Osei Akoto the NDC constituency organiser said they could be attributed to the fall in the price of cocoa on the world market and the increase in the price of crude oil.
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NDC names more candidates for parliamentary
election
Accra (Greater Accra) 09 September 2000
The National Democratic Congress has approved four more candidates to contest the December parliamentary election.
A statement issued in Accra on Thursday named them as Mr. Emmanuel Ampofo Duodu (Abuakwa), Lt. Col. (rtd) Twum Ampofo (Lower West Akim), Alhaji Baba Jamel (Akwatia) and Mr. Michael Anyane-Yeboah (Asuogyaman).
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