THE Brong Ahafo Regional Co-ordinating Council (BARCC) has instituted a programme dubbed “I Care For You” to ensure that the various municipal and district assemblies in the region become accountable to the people in the utilisation of all funds allocated to them.
Under the programme, the assemblies would organise two forums that would involve assembly members, head of departments, Nananom, opinion leaders, among others, every year.
The first phase will take place at the beginning of each year, and the budget estimates, projects and programmes of the assemblies will be outlined to the people, and an opportunity will also be created for them to make inputs, while the second phase would be held at the end of the year to review the performance of the assemblies.
Mr Eric Opoku, the Deputy Brong Ahafo Regional Minister, who said this at the first ordinary meeting of the Wenchi Municipal Assembly in Wenchi, said the move was meant to help deepen the decentralisation concept at the grass roots level and ensure accountability and transparency in the running of the assemblies.
He stated further that the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development (MLGRD) was also liaising with the District Common Fund Secretariat to also publish the funds allocated to the various assemblies to enable local government actors and all other stakeholders to demand for accountability.
This, he said, was also to ensure judicious use of funds and to let the people have a say in whatever development projects that would be undertaken by the assemblies to ensure that the process had led to an improvement in the living conditions of the people, thereby giving more meaning to the decentralisation concept.
Mr Eric Opoku, in his address, also tasked the various assembly members to educate the people on the decentralisation concepts in their electoral areas for them to appreciate and to feel being part of the process as well as being part of the Government’s programmes and policies.
He, therefore, called on the electorate to continue to keep faith with the Government since it was committed to their welfare and making good its promise of a “Better Ghana”.
Mr Yaw Osei Agyei, the Wenchi Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), in his address, proposed the construction of a multi-purpose social centre in Wenchi to include facilities such as craft bazaar shop to boost tourism and also to house other agencies of the Ministry of Chieftaincy and Culture, among others. This, he said, would give a facelift to Wenchi.
On internal revenue generation of the assembly, the MCE said it was not the best, as the assembly was able to collect only GH¢91,249.97 for the period between January and June, this year.
He, therefore, suggested the formation of a special task force to monitor revenue collection, which would also help minimise the leakages, if not eradicated completely.
Mr Agyei said he came to meet 6,000 pieces of mathematical sets and 21 boxes of Ghana@50 anniversary cups in the assembly stores and, therefore, in consultation with the Municipal Directorate of Education, the items would be distributed to schoolchildren during “My First Day at School”, scheduled for September, 2009.
He announced that the assembly had also put the three tractors of the assembly into good condition which would be hired out for ploughing and carting of goods to generate revenue for the assembly .
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