NPP Performance Tracker emphasizes toilets over substantive infrastructural devt projects - Dr Sa-ad Iddrisu

A United States-based economist, Dr. Sa-ad Iddrisu, is questioning the developmental projects listed in NPP's recently launched Performance Tracker.

In a press release issued on Thursday, April 18, 2024, Dr. Iddrisu said, “Despite borrowing over 600 billion Gh cedis in the last eight (8) years, the NPP government seems to only boast about the number of completed toilet projects in its recently launched performance tracker.”

Dr. Iddrisu also added that some of the toilet projects captured as government projects were projects executed by local assemblymen, without government funding.

“It's even more concerning that toilets funded and completed by local Assemblymen in their areas are being falsely presented as government achievements in the last eight years,” he said.

He also bemoaned why the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government didn’t deliver on substantive infrastructural projects and rather chose only toilets.

“In a country where access to essential services like portable drinking water, stable electricity supply, efficient healthcare system, and motorable roads are still lacking, one would have thought any reasonable government would focus its priorities on these rather than trumpet toilets as its accomplishment,” Dr. Iddrisu said.

He added that, “On the performance tracker's website, over 100 toilet facilities have been listed to have a 100% completion rate, compared to only three (3) regional hospitals listed as 100% completed”.

Below is the detailed press release issued by Dr. Iddrisu:

>i>Press Release:
April 18, 2024

NPP Performance Tracker Emphasizes Toilets Over Substantive Infrastructure Dev’t Projects

— Dr. Sa-ad Iddrisu

As the saying goes, development is relative, but in a country where access to essential services like portable drinking water, stable electricity supply, efficient healthcare system, and motorable roads are still lacking, one would have thought any reasonable government would focus its priorities on these rather than trumpet toilets as its accomplishment.

Despite borrowing over 600 billion Gh cedis in the last eight (8) years, the NPP government seems to only boast about the number of completed toilet projects in its recently launched performance tracker. It's even more concerning that toilets funded and completed by local Assemblymen in their areas are being falsely presented as government achievements in the last eight years.

On the performance tracker's website, over 100 toilet facilities have been listed to have a 100% completion rate, compared to only three (3) regional hospitals listed as 100% completed:

1. Hospital - Completion and Equipping of Regional Hospital with Staff Housing, Ashanti, Bosomtwe District, Sewua

2. Hospital - Completion and Equipping of Regional Hospital, Upper West, Wa Municipal, Wa

3. Hospital Expansion - Rehabilitation of Bolga Regional Hospital (Phase II), Upper East, Bolgatanga Municipal, Bolgatanga

It will even interest you to know that the Wa Municipal Regional Hospital sod cutting was done by then Vice President John Mahama and the NDC government in July 2010, and construction works started in November 2012.

Concerning tertiary education, the performance tracker’s website shows that the NPP under H.E Nana Addo and Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has built zero (0) universities in the last eight (8) years in government. Only nine (9) project upgrades have been made to existing tertiary institutions.

I can go on and on with this analysis from the Performance tracker’s website to demonstrate that the NPP’s performance tracker has no substantive infrastructural development projects to show to citizens as the government’s achievements in the last eight (8) years in power, except toilet projects.

I therefore implore the media, civil society, opposition political parties, and the general public to take an interest in scrutinizing this performance tracker further.