Before emplaning for Addis Ababa to deliver his keynote address, President John Evans Atta Mills cut the sod to commission the first phase of the ground-breaking US$1.5 billion 200,000 unit housing project.
Like all major ground-breaking undertakings, the ceremony was preceded by intense public debate as to the propriety of the venture. The minority had their say while the majority had their way. That is the beauty of democracy where all national issues are scrutinised before adoption or rejection.
After all the arguments and counterarguments, the consensus favoured the dire need to address the deficit in the nation’s housing policy, especially with regard to providing adequate shelter for the country’s gallant security forces.
Thank God the debate is behind us and work to execute the project has begun in earnest. However, the onus now rests with the Ministry of Works and Housing to ensure that Ghanaians are not short-changed by any shoddy or sub-standard work!
The President has sounded the warning, and we as stakeholders should hold the executors to the project accountable. The local content, also, should live up to expectations since their perceived sidelining prompted the heated debate which eventually factored them into this all-important project.
This Paper is encouraged by the fact that shared experiences will go a long way to improve our engineering ability as well as our work ethic, since our Asian counterparts are legendary when it comes to hard work and industry!
Let us work in tandem to ensure that this project lives up to expectation and meets the need it was contracted to fulfil.