The bad nature of Hohoe to Jasikan road
“The Eastern Corridor Road from Hohoe to Jasikan has become so bad. In fact it is now a death trap. The road is no more motorable.”
Those were the words of the Adontehene of Buem Traditional Area, Nana Buatsi expressing his displeasure over the nature of the famous Eastern Corridor road, particularly the Hohoe to Jasikan stretch.
Background
The Jasikan-Hohoe stretch is part of the larger eastern corridor road which stretches from Tema in the Greater Accra region, through the Eastern Region, Volta Region to the Northern part of Ghana. The geography of Volta Region makes it a host of a greater portion of the road.
Unfortunately, the road has stalled for a while now after initial surfacing was started over a year ago.
Residents Unhappy
The situation has become so bad that divers using the Hohoe-Jasikan road have now diverted their route through Lolobi, Teteman, and Bodada to avoid the difficulty and the risk of getting stuck on the way.
According to the drivers, the 30-minute journey from Hohoe to Jasikan has now become about two hours due to the bad nature of the road.
Chief’s Appeal
The Adontenhene has therefore appealed to government to, as a matter of urgency, fix the Hohoe-Jasikan road which he described as a ‘death trap.’
Nana Buatsi who made the appeal when the Volta Regional Minister, Dr. Archibald Letsa paid a working visit to the Jasikan district noted that “the road has become unbearable.”
The Paramount queen of the area, Nana Apaubia also made a passionate appeal to the government to provide the Jasikan District Hospital with an ambulance and other medical equipment to ensure quality health care delivery.
She said the unavailability of ambulance makes it very difficult for the transportation of patients who are being referred from the health facility to other bigger hospitals and as a result, some lose their lives.
Minister’s Response
The Regional Minister, Dr. Letsa assured the people of government’s commitment to fix the road. He said plans are far advanced to establish a starch factory at Jasikan and therefore urged farmers in the district to register for the planting for food and job policy.
From Fred Duodu, Ho (freduoo@gmail.com)