Kwabeng, Feb 8, GNA - Mr Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo, the Eastern Regional Minister, has said it was unacceptable that some District Chief Executives should be living in rented apartments.

He said most of the new districts created in the region had no basic facilities for the core staff of the District Assemblies and questioned the rationale behind the creation of new districts without basic facilities.

Speaking at a sod-cutting ceremony for work to start on a palace for Kwabeng on Saturday, Mr Ofosu-Ampofo said the creation of new District Assemblies should facilitate the pace of development and not to compound the problems.

The 85,000 Ghana-cedi palace that include a secretariat and a meeting hall became necessary following the directive from NADMO that the old palace had become dangerous for habitation and had to be pulled down.

Mr Ofosu-Ampofo appealed to District Chief Executives living in rented apartments to set their priorities right to ensure that accommodation for that office and that of the coordinating directors were provided.

He praised the people of Kwabeng for resolving their chieftaincy dispute, adding that it was the beginning of good things to happen to Kwabeng and cited Akwamu dispute and said it had blocked investments and progress of the area.

Mr Ofosu-Ampofo raised the issue of illegal mining and the resultant pollution of water bodies in the area and appealed to chiefs to get involved in the fight to protect the people from health complications.

He said research had proved that the long use of mercury and cyanide that the illegal miners use to process minerals could result in the delivery of deformed babies by women who consume water which had been polluted with these chemicals.

Mr Ata Twum, the District Chief Executive of Atiwa, said communal spirit had died down and for that reason many development projects had delayed to the extent that cements bought for some projects had caked.

The Regent of Kwabeng, Nana Adjei Twinin, appealed for a district hospital, upgrading of the Anglican Senior Technical School in the area and the rehabilitation of the town's roads to befit it status.

He said the chieftaincy dispute in the area had been resolved and following the declaring of the old palace as a death trap, the chiefs and people of the area quickly resolved to build a new palace.

Nana Adjei Twinin appealed to Kwabeng and Akyem citizens outside to support the palace project to signify the strength of the traditional authority as well as to prepare adequately for whoever would be enstooled as the chief of Kwabeng.

During a fund raising ceremony to support the project, many citizens and friends of Kwabeng including Prof Aboagye Kyei a lecturer at the University of Development Studies, Mr Joseph Okyere, Managing Director of Antarctic Construction Company, Mr Julius Debrah, the Executive Secretary of the Tourist Board and the Regional Minister donated huge sums of money towards the project.