The Government has been called upon to establish an Electoral Area Development Fund to allow elected Assembly Members to finance minor development projects in their communities.
Two elected Assembly Members from the Bole District, Hon. Sumani Abu Thompson and Hon. Alhassan Issahaku for Mankuma and Nyimange Electoral Areas respectively made the call in an interview with Yagbon radio on September 25, 2021.
This, the Assembly Members, said would not only give true meaning to the decentralization process where elected Assembly Members support the implementation of projects but would enable them to fix emergency and minor development concerns in their respective areas.
During the interview they, said due to the incessant complaints of inadequate resources to implement projects in every electoral area, some communities had been neglected for far too long, widening the poverty gap of the people in those areas.
They said the Electoral Area Development Fund would empower the elected Assembly Members to access resources to assist their communities to fix minor development initiatives.
According Hon Issahaku,he thinks that Assembly Members should be paid out of the fund to be created.
He said there are little developmental
Projects that do not need the attention of the District Assembly with the fund if created will allow the Assembly Member to fix such minor challenges in their communities.
He called for a review of the Local Government act which will allow Assembly meymbers to be paid and given a special fund for developmental projects at the local level.
According to him pressure on District Assemblies truly called for such policy intervention to bring development .
Hon Sumani Abu Thompson, the immediate past Presiding Member of the seventh batch of the Bole District Assembly said there is no seriousness in Ghana as for as the Local Government concept is concern.
According to him some Assembly Members are in charge of over eight communities but only given a motor bike without fuel.
He said the work of an Assembly Member and his unit committee is tiresome than that of a Member of Parliament but because the asysembly Member lives in the community with the people his work is not felt.
He said the primary task of a Member of Parliament is to the make laws but for they have a share in the District Assembly Common Fund.
He also reiterated the need for Assembly Members to be paid and given a special fund to fast track development in their communities.
Source: yagbonradioonline
