We’ll build new capital for Ghana - IPP

Ghana needs a well-planned city, which will serve as the new capital of the country, and an Independent People’s Party (IPP) government will make sure it is realised, founder and leader of the party, Kofi Apaloo, has said.

Mr Apaloo, who was explaining the details of his party's manifesto on Monday June 13, told Prince Minkah on Class 91.3FM’s Executive Breakfast Show that: “We want to relocate the capital from Accra to between the Brong Ahafo and Northern Regions, we want to build a new city there. This will not take more than five years to do. When you go to Egypt, they are building a new city just 56 kilometres from Cairo. Nigeria did that; they built Abuja, and Togo and Cote d’Ivoire did that, so, you should not be surprised if IPP are proclaiming that we are going to build a new city.”

The opinion of the IPP flagbearer is similar to the view of Deputy Ranking Member of parliament’s Works and Housing Committee, Justice Joe Appiah, who had earlier suggested in an interview with Class FM's parliamentary correspondent, Ekow Annan that the capital city be re-designed and relocated.

The legislator made the comments in the wake of evacuation of dozens of people from their homes in Adabraka, in the Greater Accra Region, by personnel of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS), and the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), after they were trapped in their homes and schools during long hours of heavy rainfall.

Other parts of the capital were submerged with the worst places affected recently being Kaneshie, Avenor, Weija, Alajo, the Stanbic Heights area within the Airport Residential Area, the Fiesta Royale area, Teshie Nungua, Santa Maria, and the Graphic Road, among others.

According to the presidential aspirant, such a project was necessary “to reduce pressure on facilities in Accra and reduce congestion, to build a new city, [and] also create jobs”.

He said getting funds for such a project should not be a difficult task “as a consortium will be put together and they will come out with it”.

“It might not necessarily be government and you can have private investors for this,” he added.