The Obuasi East Municipal Assembly has announced that 10 per cent of its District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF) allocation will be dedicated to completing viable development projects inherited from previous administrations.
The Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Mr William Kofi Adzowu, disclosed this when he commissioned the newly completed Akaporiso Community Centre.
He said the decision was based on the Assembly’s commitment to ensuring that public projects initiated for the benefit of residents were completed, regardless of the administration that started them.
Mr Adzowu said the Akaporiso facility, which was initiated under the previous New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration, had been completed under the current National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration.
He stressed that development projects should not be politicised because their ultimate beneficiaries were the people.
“Project development is for the people, not for political parties,” he said.
The MCE said the Assembly would continue to identify and complete viable legacy projects across the municipality as part of efforts to improve living conditions and provide residents with essential infrastructure.
He cited the ongoing completion of the new Obuasi East District Assembly Office as another major inherited project being pursued by the Assembly.
Mr Adzowu said measures had also been put in place to ensure the sustainability of the newly completed community centre.
Under the management arrangement, 30 per cent of revenue generated from renting the facility would be paid to the Assembly, while the remaining 70 per cent would be retained by the community for maintenance and upkeep.
He said a monitoring committee had been established to inspect the facility every three months.
The MCE said the centre would provide residents with a suitable venue for funerals, weddings, meetings and other social gatherings, reducing the need to block roads for such activities.
The Chief Executive Officer of In Him Is Life Limited, the contractor for the project, Mr William Ezor, said the facility had a seating capacity of approximately 500 people.
He said it also included a 10-seater washroom facility, two offices and a mechanised borehole to provide a reliable water supply.
The Dompoase Kontihene, Nana Bosompem Kitikyi Apenteng II, commended successive governments for contributing to the completion of the project.
He acknowledged the previous NPP administration for initiating the facility and the current NDC administration for completing it.
Nana Apenteng urged residents to support the MCE and pray for his success, noting that several other development projects were ongoing in the municipality.
These include the construction of a science laboratory, perimeter wall and boys’ and girls’ dormitories at Christ the King College (CKC), as well as plans to relocate the Obuasi East District Assembly offices to Pomposo.
He disclosed that he was personally supervising the removal of containers and temporary structures opposite the community centre to create space for parking.
The traditional leader appealed to the Assembly to construct a proper parking area for users of the facility and provide an access road linking the centre to the main road.
The commissioning of the Akaporiso Community Centre highlights the Assembly’s approach of treating public infrastructure as community assets that should be completed, maintained and made available to residents irrespective of the political administration that initiated them.
