The public toilet
The Assembly Member for the Aboadze Electoral Area in the Shama Constituency, Emmanuel Avevor, has alleged that there is a particular public toilet facility in the area that only known members of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the area are granted access to.
He indicated that the said public toilet facility was built by the Lower Pra Rural Bank in the Shama Constituency for the Aboadze community.
He, however, asserted that the toilet facility was later handed over to an NPP Electoral Area Coordinator in 2024 by the party’s parliamentary candidate in the last general election who was a past Chief Executive Officer of the Bank.
According to the assembly member, after the NPP candidate lost in the last parliamentary elections, the public toilet was locked up and only activists of the NPP are allowed to access it.
He described the situation as outrageous, discriminatory and unjustified.
The assembly member mentioned that even though the toilet facility was built by the rural bank for the Aboadze community, the 2024 NPP parliamentary candidate cannot take credit for its construction.
“The toilet was built and handed over to the community. So how come an NPP Electoral Area coordinator and a former assembly member should lock it up and deny members of the community from using it? he quizzed
“For now, it is only NPP members and sympathizers of the NPP that have access to the toilet,” he asserted.
Assertion Denied
Meanwhile, a former Presiding Member of the assembly who once served as an Assembly Member for the area, Peaceful Baidoo, has denied the assertions by the current assembly member.
Mr Baidoo indicated that since the toilet facility was handed over to the community, it has been operational and opened to the public.
“It’s not true the toilet has been under lock. To the best of my knowledge, since the opening ceremony it has been opened to the public,” he said.
He said the NPP and its 2024 parliamentary candidate have no interest in taking over the management of the toilet facility.
He disclosed that similar facilities were built for Abuesi, Nyankrom and Anto Aboso among others.
“Even for Nyankrom, it was completed after the election. The NPP 2024 candidate for Shama, Kwamena Afful, even told the community the toilets were not built because of the elections so one cannot say, the toilet was built purposely for votes,” he explained.
Meanwhile, some National Democratic Congress (NDC) activists in the Shama constituency have suggested that an official announcement be made in the community, that the toilet facility is no longer under lock.
They also suggested that the management of the facility should be entrusted with the current assembly member and the opinion leaders in the area.
From Emmanuel Opoku, Takoradi