A public toilet at Aboadze of the Shama District in the Western Region, has allegedly been locked up following the loss of the 2024 Parliamentary Candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the constituency, Isaac Kwamina Afful.
According to the Assembly Member for the area, Emmanuel Avevor, only known NPP members in the community are granted access to the toilet, a situation he finds outrageously discriminatory and unjustified.
Emmanuel Avevor alleged that the toilet has been kept under lock by the former Assembly Member and an NPP Electoral Coordinator, adding that “only he and his wife have the keys to the toilet.”
He continued that the toilet was financed and built by the Lower Pra Rural Bank for the Aboadze community, and as such cannot be mistaken to be the property of the NPP or any political party in the area.
“The toilet was built and handed over to the community. So how come an assembly member gets to lock it up and deny members of the community from using it? For now, it is only NPP members and sympathizers that have access to the toilet,” he stated on Connect FM’s midday news, Orokodo Kasaebo.
The toilet was handed over to the NPP Electoral Area Coordinator and other members of the community in 2024 by the parliamentary candidate. He was a past Chief Executive Officer of the Lower Pra Rural Bank and thus takes credit for the construction of the toilet facility.
But a former Presiding Member, who also served as the Assembly Member for the area, Peaceful Baidoo rebuts the claims by his colleague. He says the toilet has since the handing over ceremony been operational and open to the public.
“It’s not true the toilet has been under lock. To the best of my knowledge, it has been open to the public for the past two weeks since my last visit to the community.”
He argued that NPP and the 2024 Parliamentary Candidate have no interest in taking over the management of the toilet facility.
“Similar facilities were built for Aboasi, Nyankrom, Anto Aboso among others. Even for Nyankrom, it was completed after the election…Kwamena Afful told the community the toilets were not built because of the elections so one cannot say, the toilet was built purposely for votes.”
Emmanuel Avenor, unconvinced by the response from Peaceful Baidoo, demanded an official announcement be made in the community that the toilet is no longer under lock. He argues that it is prudent the management of the toilet is entrusted with the assembly member [himself] and other authorities in the Aboadze community.
