Residents of Sisaala East, Wa East and Sisaala West districts in the Upper West region has given President Akufo-Addo a two-week ultimatum to include them in the €35 million roads rehabilitation project in the region or face their wrath.
The angry residents demanded from government their share of the road infrastructure ongoing across the country.
Minister of Roads and Highways Kwasi Amoako-Atta, on Tuesday May 18, 2021 cut the sod for the rehabilitation of 670 km of feeder roads linking food production areas and market centres across eight Municipalities and Districts in the Upper West Region.
The €35 million roads rehabilitation project is one of the components of the larger €145 million European Union-Ghana Agricultural Programme (EU-GAP).
But Sisaala East, Wa East and Sisaala West districts were missing in the beneficiary list when the roads minister cut the sod for the project even though they claim to be the food basket of the region.
Information gathered from the Upper West Regional Department of Food and Agriculture indicates that Sissala districts are the leading producers of maize and other foods in the region.
The Sissala districts produced a total of 103,474.42 metric tones of maize in 2019 farming season.
Residents of the affected districts described farm road network in the districts as the most poorest and wondered how they were not part of the rehabilitation of 670 km of feeder roads linking food production areas and market centres in the Upper West region.
A forum organized by Chiefs and smallholder farmers at Tumu expressed worry over government snubbing and exclusion of the districts in the Sissala area.
“The personal bias of the selection committee that resulted in the total exclusion of Wa East , Sissala West and Sissala East districts which are the leading producers of food crops in the region is so unfair and insensitive to the farming communities,” they said
The residents demanded that the Ministry of Roads and Highway should publish the selection criteria that formed the basis for the inclusion or exclusion of beneficiary districts under EU funded 670 project.
Again they demanded that in the spirit of fairness, social justice and non-discrimination, the selection of farm access roads be done based on production levels.
“We further demand that the Ministry of Roads and Highway should immediately find additional resources to create, rehabilitate and maintain abandoned farm roads in the excluded farming districts under the EU funded 670 km farm access roads project.
Residents of affected districts embarked on a peaceful demonstration to register their displeasure over poor roads in the area.
The demonstrators burnt car tyres and embarked on a peaceful demonstration with placards with inscriptions “ This discrimination has gone on since the creation of the Upper West; We are giving the president 2 weeks to act or the worse would happen; Dr. Gylele bring back our roads, We need our share of the roads; Food basket district denied roads” among others.
FROM Eric Kombat, Tumu