Dr Letsa and His Deputy being briefed by the Resident Engineer
The Asikuma to Hohoe portion of the Eastern Corridor road is posing serious challenges to the contractors and road users due to delay in completion.
The project which has been divided into three phases; Asikuma to Agate, Agate to Logba-Alakpeti and Logba-Alakpeti to Hohoe have exceeded their completion dates severally due to lack of funds.
This was revealed by the Resident Engineer on the Project, Mohammed Abu when the Volta Regional Minister, Archibald Yao Letsa and his deputy, Maxwell Blagogee inspected the project recently.
Project Details
Although the erstwhile National Democratic Congress (NDC) government announced the start of the projects earlier, the Asikuma to Agate portion was awarded in 2011 and expected to be completed in 2014. However, six years down the line, the project which is funded by Government of Ghana (GoG) is just 50% complete.
The 20km Agate to Logba-Alapketi road was awarded in April 2016 after earlier attempts to start work on the stretch failed. The project which is expected to be completed in 36 months, thus April 2019, is now 58% complete with the funders being Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD).
The third phase, 31.3km Logba-Alakpeti to Hohoe road which is being funded by GoG was also awarded in April 2016 and expected to be completed in April 2019, yet it is only 38% concluded as progress of work is slow.
The entire stretch which totals 96.3 kilometres is a little shy of 50% done due to lack of funds. The situation, the Resident Engineer stressed, was seriously hindering the operations of the contractor and also making life difficult for road users.
Road Users Unhappy
Drivers who ply the road were unhappy with the status of the road. They noted that obstacles on the road; abandoned road signs, road works, pot holes some as deep as trenches makes driving challenging, particularly as their vehicles break down regularly.
Residents along the route complained bitterly about dust covering their homes. They also complained that portions of the road get muddy during rainy seasons.
Government Assurance
The Volta Regional Minister, Dr. Archiebald Letsa who toured the entire 96.3km being constructed by a Chinese Company, G.S International Developers Ghana Limited sympathised with drivers and residents along the stretch.
He indicated that the Eastern Corridor road was very dear to the heart of the Nana Addo-led government and pledged to lay the concerns before government and the appropriate authorities.
He stressed that the issue would be treated with the urgency that it needs as it is a major road that links many commercial towns.
He however urged the contractor to make the Peki-Kpeve road motorable as it is posing a lot of dangers and inconveniences for road users and residents while arrangements are made for consistent supply of funds.
From Fred Duodu and Gibril Abdul Razak, Ho
