Alban Bagbin in a handshake with President Akufo-Addo
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has received a rare assurance of support from the other aisle of local politics during his working tour of the Upper West Region.
The Second Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin, who doubles as the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament (MP) for the Nadowli-Kaleo Constituency in the Upper West Region, told the President that he was solidly behind his government and any government that is committed to developing the country.
The camaraderie exhibited by the two personalities when they met during the commissioning of a solar project said it all about the cordiality existing between them. “Second Deputy Speaker of Parliament,” the President yelled as Alban Bagbin approached him with a broad smile, hands stretched.
It is the kind exchange of pleasantries that exists only among acquaintances of long standing.
The longest serving MP’s testimonial during the tour and the commissioning of the project said it all about his admiration for the President’s development agenda which, as he observed, is a countrywide trend.
“I want to congratulate His Excellency for and on behalf of our people and to assure him that we are solidly behind the government and any other government that is committed to developing the good people of Ghana,” he disclosed at the sod cutting for the construction of two solar power plants at Kaleo and Lawra, both in the Upper West Region, under the 17-megawatt peak solar power project.
Continuing, he said, “I want to take this opportunity not just to welcome His Excellency to the Nadwoli-Kaleo Constituency but also on behalf of the people and chiefs of this area to thank him so much for continuing with this project…”
The President said the project was a testimony to his government’s commitment to the diversification of the country’s energy generation portfolio towards the increase of the renewable energy component of the energy mix. “This is the country’s contribution towards the fight against climate change,” he added.
With the solar project coming on the heels of the construction of the Pwalugu Multipurpose Dam and Irrigation Project, the 17-megawatt project is being funded by the German Government’s Development Bank, KfW, at a cost of €22.8 million.
President Akufo-Addo said, “See to the construction of a 13-megawatt peak project at Kaleo and a 4-megawatt peak project at Lawra. This will help Ghana avoid an estimated 7,400 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions every year, making our country a cleaner place to live in.”
He continued, “The project at Lawra is scheduled to be completed in June this year, with the one at Kaleo also scheduled to be completed by December this year. When finished, both projects will generate enough energy to power some 32,000 households, and increase the geographic spread of power generation in the country.”
These solar power plants, the first of its kind in the Upper West Region, would mean that this region also has its fair share of power generation assets in the country.
By A.R. Gomda