Deputy Minister for Works and Housing who doubles as the Member of Parliament for Kwesimintsim, Dr. Prince Hamid Armah, ignored the Saturday afternoon downpour to inspect ongoing drainage and road projects in the constituency.
The Minister, who was recently confirmed by Parliament and sworn into office by the President, Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo to assist Kojo Oppong Nkrumah at the Ministry of Works and Housing believes it is prudent to begin his new job from his backyard.
The heavy rains did not deter him from inspecting all ongoing roads and drainage projects in the area.
“We are inspecting some of the projects I have lobbied for, especially roads and drainage systems, and I’m doing this in the light of the fact that the President has appointed me as the Deputy Minister for Works and Housing and part of my work is to look at flooding situation and efficient drainage systems and I think it’s important that I start from my backyard,” he indicated.
Construction sites visited include the 850-meter Anaji Choice Mart to I Adu storm drain, a 2-meter box culvert, and other significant extensions. Others include the 1km Nyamebekyere road, SSNIT inner roads, District Court road, Anaji West Sector E inner roads, being funded by the World Bank as part of the Secondary Cities Project, and parts of the Agona Nkwanta to Takoradi Highway.
These projects are in their various stages of completion. When completed, the rampant flooding experienced by residents in the constituency will be reduced.
“We have visited different project sites and all of them are in different stages of completion,” he added.
The heavy rains exposed the Minister to some flood-prone areas in his constituency. Some roads were flooded by the rainwater whilst the homes of some residents were not spared. The Minister took time to ascertain the real cause of the flood.
“If you look at what is happening here, it is obvious that the people of Kwesiminstim constituency are suffering. You can see everywhere is flooded and basically, it is because this constituency is a low-lying area in the whole of the Western Region so the least rain gets the whole place flooded. The rain coincidentally gives us insight into the problems of flooding in the constituency. We have had a good feeling of people’s suffering, so we will deal comprehensively with the issue and find solutions” he assured.
Wilson Amegashie, Urban Roads Engineer of Effia-Kwesimintsim municipality, indicated that the main challenge in silting the drains has been the situation of illegal structures.
The Minister was joined by the Regional NADMO Coordinator, Abdul Ganiyu Mohammed, the EKMA Works Engineer, Benjamin Aidoo, the Municipal Urban Roads Engineer, Wilson Amagashi and EKMA Deputy NADMO Director, Osman Buhari.
By Eric Nana Gyetuah|ConnectFM|Takoradi
