Togbe Afede XIV, Agbogbomefia of Asogli and President of Volta Region House of Chiefs, recently accused the NDC of not showing interest in developmental issues in the region, adding that the governing party had taken the region for granted, with a show of gross disrespect towards the chiefs and the people.
The renowned paramount further expressed anger at the continuous tagging of the Region as the ‘World Bank’ of the NDC, saying the party was only interested in the votes of the people and not their wellbeing.
The latest agitations are coming from the Paramount and Divisional Chiefs of Kpenoe, Takla and Hodzo communities in the Ho Municipality, who have given the Mahama government a two-week ultimatum to fix their deplorable roads.
Speaking at a press conference yesterday, the Paramount Chief of Kpenoe Traditional Area, Togbe Kotoku XI, warned that failure to commence works on their roads would leave them with no option than to block the roads to vehicular traffic.
They will subsequently declare a 'three month of communal labor' to fix the roads themselves, and during that no political party will be allowed to carry out its activities in the area.
Before yesterday’s press conference, the youth of the area had gone on a series of demonstrations to draw the attention of the government to the poor nature of their roads.
The Chief lamented that the roads linking their three communities to the Ho, the regional capital, are the worst in the Municipality.
Togbe Kotoku XI further indicated that he and his people felt neglected by the NDC government when it comes to development.
“We have made several attempts to bring government’s attention to our plight. Our youth organized demonstrations and sent petitions to no avail. Tension is gradually mounting among our youth over the seemingly neglect of our roads whilst some other roads in the municipality are being fixed with enthusiasm ahead of the December polls.
"We are therefore praying that some work starts on our roads in two weeks; if not, we will block the roads and declare three months of communal labor to fix our roads", he stressed.
Togbe Kotoku XI threatened: "during this period, we will ban any political activity in the traditional areas to ensure that our people remain focused and committed to the work on the roads. Should any political party take the risk and come here, we can't guarantee their safety."
Although a bulldozer was seen clearing shoulders of the roads, the Chiefs believe it is one of government's gimmicks for political gains.
"We have seen a rickety bulldozer on the roads about three days ago but since nobody has come to introduce the contractor to us, we are sure they are not in for real business, perhaps the government only wants to use this as a camouflage to get votes from us", one stressed.
‘Volta4Change’, a pressure group from Volta region, last week accused the NDC of only interested in the votes it gets from the region, adding that President Mahama had now shown any interest in the development of the the region.
"John Mahama sees us as a guaranteed perpetual source of votes, even when we have been neglected. Indeed, we have been described as the ‘World Bank’ of the NDC, yet they have no incentive to provide our region with the support that it gravely needs. In the minds of the NDC, no matter how bad things get in the Volta Region or they treat us, they will still be voted for," the group said in a statement.
According to the group, any decision by the people of Volta region "to vote for John Mahama en masse like we continually do for the NDC will be tantamount to a regional suicide.”
It added: “For us Voltarians, the 2016 general election boils down to one issue - what future do we want for our region? To those that continue to vote for the NDC out of a misplaced sense of ‘tribal loyalty’, ask yourself whether or not your life has changed for the better within the eight years of this NDC government? Inflation, dumsor, dilapidation of infrastructure and corruption has followed John Mahama like a putrid smell. In this year's elections, our votes will be decided on issues and issues only."