From Isaac Akwetey-Okunor
(ikantso2012@gmail.com)
The Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for the Suhum Municipal Assembly, Samuel Fleischer Kwabi, has charged the newly-elected assembly members of the area to be responsible in the development of their respective electoral areas.
According to the MCE, instead of members of the house lobbying and fighting for development projects to their electoral areas in an effort to improve on the living conditions of the people who voted them into the assembly, they rather end up fighting for themselves and clouding their decision-making with politics.
To him, the best mark and reciprocal gesture of gratitude and appreciation the assembly members can offer their people would be development projects, hence, they should desist from activities that would deny their electoral areas developmental projects.
He made this appeal during the inauguration of assembly members to the house on Tuesday, which took place at the forecourt of the Assembly Hall, and brought together relatives, friends and departmental heads.
Others who graced the occasion include the Member of Parliament (MP) for Suhum, Fredrick Opare Ansah, Osabarima Ayeh Kofi I, Chief of Suhum, Opanin Abraham Kweku Adusei, the President’s representative who is also a Council of State Member, and other traditional leaders and clergy.
In all, 44 persons, made up of 30 elected members and 14 government appointees, were sworn into office by Her Worship Naomi Achianu, a Suhum-based Magistrate Court Judge.
Meanwhile, the assembly failed to produce a Presiding Member (PM) when the two contestants, James Larweh and Martin Adu Boafo failed to obtain the two-thirds majority of members, after three runs of voting, supervised by the Suhum Municipal Electoral Officer, Mensah Walarnyo.
Frederick Opare Ansah called on the assembly members to present a PM within the next ten days to pave the way for commencement of work. He charged them to sweep under the carpet issues of politics and favouritism in the next election, and elect a competent and dedicated PM soon, since Parliament would resume at the end of this month to approve a budget for the country, including that of the various assemblies.
78 persons, comprising 54 elected assembly members and 32 government appointees, took the oath of secrecy and allegiance at the New Juaben Municipal Assembly. Available statistics shows that out of the 54 elected members, 30 retained their seats, whilst 24 new people entered the house.
The MP for New Juaben South Constituency, Mark Assibey Yeboah, tasked the newly-elected members to concentrate on sanitation in their areas. According to him, the municipality has suffered some avoidable floods and disease outbreaks following the construction of buildings on waterways, and the indiscriminate disposal of refuse.
He cautioned the Town and Country Planning and Survey departments and Lands Commission to drum home the rules and regulations governing the allocation of land, and ensure that plots allocated are developed according to their rules, in order to avoid floods and loss of lives.
The New Juaben South MP further appealed to the assembly to deploy innovative ways to generate revenue, and pull the brakes on over-reliance of the District Common Fund, as well as advised members of the house to establish laws to deal with sanitation. On his part, the MCE for the New Juaben Assembly, Kwaku Owusu Acheampong, entreated the new members to promote and support rule of law in the house, through hard work, credibility, and dedication.
The representative of President John Dramani Mahama, the Chief of Staff, Mr. Julius Debrah, also charged the members to make the development of children their priority when they resume work.
He mentioned that the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development was pursuing policies on the establishment of small and medium scale enterprises to boost the local economy across the assemblies. This, in his view, would generate employment for the youth, hence him tasking the assembly to explore avenues to create opportunities for the youth.