General News of Sunday, 4 May 2014

Source: GNA

Gov’t won’t renege on its responsibilities – Mahama

President John Dramani Mahama has given the assurance his government is committed to delivering on its campaign promises in spite of the economic challenges the country is facing.

He said government had the responsibility to provide basic social amenities including water, electricity and good health facilities for the citizens and his administration would therefore not renege on those responsibilities.

President Mahama announced this when he commissioned the Mampong water supply rehabilitation project to provide potable water to Mampong Municipality and 17 surrounding communities in the Sekyere areas of the Ashanti.

The $21.6 million project, which is a concessionary loan between the Government of Ghana and the United States EXIM Bank with a grant element of 35 per cent, is aimed at increasing water supply to more communities in the area.

The expansion works include design and engineering, dredging to increase storage capacity, rehabilitation of the existing water treatment plant and new transmission pipeline construction among other projects.

President Mahama said, although Mampong had a population of 58,000 people, the new water project could supply potable water to 100,000 people with the increment from 2.5 million cubic metres to 10.5 million cubic metres.

He appealed to them to frequently maintain the machines to ensure its continuous supply of water to the people.

Inaugurating an electricity project at Frante in the Ejura-Sekyedumase District in Ashanti Region, President Mahama said electricity, roads, railways, potable water and health facilities would continue to dominate the Government’s “Better Ghana agenda” and called on Ghanaians to lend all the necessary support to achieve those goals.

He announced that 54 communities in the Ejura-Sekyedumase District were slated for connection to the national electricity grid, and promised to execute the projects on schedule.

President Mahama said although the national electricity connection percentage was 75.6, that of the Ashanti Region had reached 85.1 per cent, making the Region the leading area in terms of electricity connection.

Daasebere Osei Bonsu, Paramount Chief of the Mampong Traditional Area commended President Mahama for continuing with all the development projects initiated by former Presidents Kufuor and Mills.

He, however, appealed to the President to complete all the projects that had over the years been embarked upon in the district and beyond, and complete the Ahomasu electricity project to power the Mampong water project.

Alhaji Collins Dauda, Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing promised that government would continue to execute more of such projects to improve the lives of Ghanaians.

President Mahama also inspected road projects in the Ejura-Sekyedumase and Mampong Districts.