Nana Obombo Sewura Lupuwura II
The Paramount Chief of the Akyode Traditional Area in the Nkwanta Municipality of the Oti region has confirmed that the creation of the Oti region has started yielding benefits beyond their expectations.
Nana Obombo Sewura Lupuwura II, who spoke on behalf of the Chiefs and people in the Nkwanta area could not hide his excitement when he said, “We have began to witness remarkable development within this short period that Oti region has been created.”
He added that the creation of Oti, has proven to him and the entire Oti that the President is true to his word.
This he said was amazing considering the fact that the Region is just a year old. Nana Lupuwura II was speaking at Nkwanta during a durbar on the first day of President Akufo-Addo’s three-day tour of Oti and Volta region.
The President also cut sod for a two storey Oti Regional Directorate of Food and Agricultural and two Bungalows for personnel of the directorate. The project which expected to be completed in eight months will have a lift to cater for persons living with disability.
The Chief who is also the President of the Akyode Traditional Council expressed gratitude to the president for the 1 District 1 Warehouse project which has helped his people who are mostly farmers to make good use of their harvest.
He however lamented about the poor nature of roads from farm lands, saying in as much there are able to store some in the warehouse, a good number of the produce are stuck on the farms.
He said if those roads are constructed, Nkwanta and Oti as a whole can become the food basket of the country.
The Roads Minister, Amoako Attah in his response to the plight of the Chiefs noted that government is putting measures to ensure new roads in the new regions are improved to be at par with existing ones.
Alan Kyeremanteng, the Minister of Trade and Industries assured the people that, under the one distruct one factory program, a cassava and yam processing factory will soon be established in Nkwanta to make good use of the cassava and yam glut.
President in a brief address expressed gratitude in the people of Oti for having faith in him and his government.
He said although his promises in the run up to the 2016 were branded as lies, the reality on the ground has proven that he was true to his words.
He announced the establishment of Tree Crop Development Authority to transform the cultivation of Cashew, Rubber, Palm Oil and other tree crops into foreign exchange earners just like what Cocoboard has done to cocoa.
He added that feeder roads is also going to be equipped and well financed to improve farm roads just as how cocoa roads have been developed.
From Fred Duodu, Nkwanta (k.duodu@yahoo.com)