Foodstuffs Left to Rot In Assin South …Over Bad Roads
Despite shortage of foodstuffs in urban areas of the country, some farmers in the Assin Aboabo Camp, a suburb of Assin South District in the Central Region, are counting their loses, as their crops rot away on their farms.
According to the frustrated farmers, these crops are wasting in the farms because of the deplorable state of their roads, which have made it impossible for vehicles to transport these foodstuffs to the towns.
The roads, The Anchor gathered, have been in that bad state for a while but the coming in of this year’s rains has made the situation worse.
The farmers cited the 15km road from Assin Aworoso which connects major food hubs such as Assin Aboabo Camp, Nyamebekyere, Akwetey Nō.1, and No.2 among other adjoining communities, as being in a deplorable state and thus impeding development in the area.
“Although the area is known for its massive production of both foodstuff and cash crops, the poor state of the roads makes it difficult for us to transport our farm produce to nearby market centres after harvest,” another resident complained bitterly.
The disappointed farmers say the inability of their Member of Parliament (MP) John Ntim Fordjour, who is also a Deputy Minister for Education, to facilitate the construction of the road networks has contributed hugely to the mess.
Speaking to Angel FM, the disappointed residents lamented that several promises by Rev. Ntim Fordjour, to reshape the bad roads, have yielded no results.
According to them, the lawmaker has only succeeded in grading some roads without completion, worsening their plight at this time of heavy rains.
The promise to fix the terrible roads according to the townsfolk dates back to the period the MP was nominated as a Deputy Minister last year.
According to the residents, even though the lawmaker paraded the contractor for the roads during a mini durbar, the said contractor left site almost immediately after the MP left the scene.“When the MP was nominated by the President for the Deputy Minister position, he summoned chiefs and elders of the area at a mini durbar in August 2021 and promised to rehabilitate the roads, but the contractor together with his machine, left 30 minutes after the MP left, with no reason”, a resident noted.They also accused the MP of his inconsistent visit to the constituency; a situation they said is worrying because they hardly see him to put before him their concerns.
Highlighting the impact of the heavy rains, another resident said; “When it rains, our road worries us; occasionally cars get trapped on the road, traders and people heading to Assin Fosu, get stopped on the road, so we beg the authorities to come to our aid.
On his part, the Unit Committee Chairman of Akwetey Electoral Area, Boasie Amponsah, said residents struggle to go to the nearby towns during emergencies, as drivers refuse to ply the roads due to their bad state.
“We want to know if we are part of Ghana” he demanded.They are calling on the MP, the District Chief Executive (DCE), Felicia Amissah Ntrakwa, to help fix the deplorable roads in the communities.
Source: theanchorghana
