Business & Financial Times: Restoration of Accra-Tema Motorway streetlights encouraging

Hurray! Finally, the streetlights on the Accra -Tema motorway are being repaired! The B&FT noticed this development last week, and the few that were repaired actually made visibility on that stretch a whole lot clearer.

This will go a long way to avert accidents due to poor visibility at night on the motorway, and we commend the authorities for rising up to the task. In all fairness, the blame does not solely lie with the Roads and Highways Department but mostly on those unscrupulous individuals who pillage the poles in search of copper wires - and in the process destroy the streetlights.

Governments have on countless occasions tried to repair the streetlights only for these bandits to pillage and destroy. Thus, while the state is expending millions to install the streetlights we urge the ministry to institute some form of security detail to monitor the lights and ensure culprits are brought to book. That way, it will send a strong message so would-be vandals will be wary of destroying government property for their parochial interests.

Ordinarily, we should not be celebrating the restoration of streetlights on the motorway - but Ghanaians have long grown used to plying the Accra-Tema motorway at night without streetlights, and seeing that they are being fixed, whether it is an election year or not, requires some jubilation.

The president has announced that this year will be the year of massive road rehabilitation, and we reckon that repairing the streetlights on the motorway is in fulfillment of that promise. We also hope that it does not remain a nine-day wonder, but rather Roads and Highways Ministry will persistently see to the restoration of not only the motorway but equally all principal streets - including the Achimota-Nsawam stretch which also has all its streetlights non-functioning.

Apart from the danger it poses to motorists, this is a sad reflection of the state of the country's maintenance culture- and this must change for the better. Why is it that we are quick to destroy landmarks that we spend so much money on to institute or construct?

It is because people feel they can get away with such wanton destruction with impunity. We need to be more responsible and task people to apprehend such nation -wreckers.