The government is under fire from two Afram Plains Lawmakers for reportedly diverting $98 million that was intended for the development of the Adawso-Ekyi Amanfrom-Donkorkrom highways.
The government is allegedly planning to redirect monies granted for the building of by-passes on the Accra-Kumasi motorway from Osino to Konongo, according to a statement signed by the MPs Betty Nana Efua Krosbi Mensah and Joseph Appiah Boateng, both of Afram Plains North.
Reaction
The Ministry of Roads and Highways' Public Affairs Unit, in reaction to the accusations, stated that the project really comprised of two contracts.
The first, according to the document, was the building of Bunso Adawso and the 104 km of designated approach roads to the Adawso bridge ("the Road Contract").
This includes the Takorowatwen-Ekyi Amanfrom road (22 kilometres), the Adawso-Kwahu Tafo road (20 kilometres), the Kwahu Tafo-Miaso road (29 kilometres), the Miaso-Begoro road (26 kilometres), and the Begoro-Obuoho road (7km).
The second, according to it, was the "Bridge Contract," which involved the design and building of the Adawso bridge. To link Adawso with Ekyi Amanfrom in the Eastern Region, a two-lane bridge with service lanes and a promenade measuring around 3.6 km must be built, as well as a new toll plaza.
According to the statement, it was anticipated that the two halves of the project, which had a total cost of €350 million, would be carried out concurrently and finished in 30 months, provided that the financial arrangement was successfully completed.
These MPs
Later, when speaking to the Parliamentary Press Corps, the MPs said that the government's decision would deny the residents of Afram Plains their fair piece of the national pie and exacerbate their living conditions because of the appalling condition of the roads.
"The administration, in presenting the agreement before Parliament, explained plainly why we must prioritise the road network in the Afram plains; to ensure food security in the country since the majority of cities and towns derive their food supply from Afram," Moreover, they added, "the people of Afram Plains are shut off from the rest of the nation owing to physical access and a lack of connecting highways, leaving the boat as their main mode of transportation."
The MPs criticised the move to shift the cash and claimed it was politically driven, possibly depriving the populace of access to improved living circumstances.
Highway Ministry
According to the statement from the Roads Ministry, the bridge contract was linked to the road contract in order to realise the full benefits of the project.
"Since the two projects and the financial arrangements were approved by Parliament, the administration has been working assiduously to secure project funds," The government allotted around US$98 million under the US$750 million loan from the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) as a contribution to the road contract component after one of the financiers rejected to take part in the financial arrangement, according to the announcement.
"It is crucial to note that the government has not been able to complete the arrangement of the finance for the project because of the present debt restructuring effort.
The statement stated that the government was working on many road projects to upgrade the condition of the roads in the Afram Plains region.
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