Gov’t embezzles SADA funds

Samuel Atta Akyea, New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament for Abuakwa South constituency, has lambasted the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government for misappropriating funds meant for the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) project.

The Abuakwa South MP wondered why government was not interested in an initiative that would serve as a special vehicle to address the economic imbalance between the north and the south but was rather interested in giving money to a wrong person.

Mr Atta Akyea, who was speaking at the Hawa Yakubu Memorial Lecture at the British Council in Accra, said SADA, which was a powerful arrangement to help the people of the north, was mismanaged leading to the nation being ripped-off deliberately by some individuals.

“This arrangement was so good that everybody, including those of us in the south, believed that we needed to push it so hard for if it happened, the north prospect would have taken care of most problems in the country. The economic potential there is so serious. They gave opportunity for this project to prosper and to develop the north to a gentleman also from the north to partner SADA in order to bring about some prosperity to the place. It turned out to be scam,” he stated.

He lamented the fact that in the heat of the scam, NPP MPs from the north did not speak against what was happening.

“I never saw even from my own party serious members of parliament from the north who said this was bad. But I can tell you that the nation was ripped off. The whole situation was so bad and terrible that we are talking about something in the neighborhood of about GH¢15 million went down the drain in the name of trying to do reforestation and also guinea fowl production,” he underscored. The MP said that it was about time women became bold, stood their ground and spoke their minds just like the late Hawa Yakubu did.

“One thing I found about this woman as a politician is her capacity to speak the truth. When we talk about women empowerment, we should also cry for women who will stand their grounds, be bold and speak their minds. I want to address that the power of being bold, I think defines Hawa Yakubu of blessed memory,” he claimed.

He continued, “A nation where we have all the women in the cemetery and nobody is going to speak up their mind relating to serious matters of national importance would not be consistent with the whole persona of Hon Hawa Yakubu.”