Korley Klottey Municipal Assembly inaugurated
Mr Yaw Osafo Marfo, the Senior Minister, on Tuesday inaugurated the Korley Klottey Municipal Assembly with Osu as its capital.
He said the inauguration was in line with President Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo Addo’s vision and initiative towards achieving clean and greener cities, and bringing development closer to the people.
The Senior Minister, who represented the President at the function, said six other municipal assemblies were being inaugurated simultaneously, and commended the chiefs for their support, as well as the huge crowd that defied the threat of the early morning rains, to participate in the event.
Mr Osafo Marfo, speaking on the importance of the decentralization of the state governance system, said it would lead to the effective implementation of national policies and programmes for actual development to occur at the grassroots level.
He urged the newly inaugurated Assembly, which was no more part of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), to work hard towards achieving key milestones in addressing challenges such as sanitation, flooding, education and youth unemployment in the city.
The Senior Minister said the Korley Klottey Municipality currently housed the largest establishment and facilities including financial institutions and business entities, which served as a great source for revenue mobilization, hence they need not to wait for their share of the Common Fund before embarking upon development projects.
The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), he said, would no more collect property rates from the district, hence the Assembly would have to work hard to improve upon the previously 10 million dollar annual revenues from property rates as declared by the Authority for 2017.
He urged the new Assembly to target a minimum of $ 100 million from property rates which is attainable through hard work and without corruption.
Mr Osafo Marfo said government was keen on creating opportunities for all Ghanaians, building a prosperous country as well as maintaining unity among its people, but would need the support of all to achieve these goals of developing the country.
He also urged the Assembly to consult the rich human resources from Osu which has produced numerous seasoned personalities including the current Speaker of Parliament, Professor Mike Ocquaye, to improve upon the development of the District.
Prof Mike Ocquaye thanked the chiefs and all the Assembly members for the unity they exhibited throughout the processes towards the creation and inauguration of the District, which has been devoid of any partisan colours and urged that such attitudes be fostered to bring about the desired development.
Nii Kinka Dowuona, the Osu Mantse, called for the development of a new sense of responsibility and hard work among the people, saying it is the only way to achieve the key sanitation and development goals in the district.
He thanked the President and all who worked behind the scenes to achieve this success, and promised to support all efforts to ensure total discipline as a hallmark for the Municipality.
Nii Tetteh Adjabeng, the Adabraka Atokpai Mantse, added his voice to the call to garner support and form partnerships, to push the Assembly’s activities; adding that there is the need to institute a scholarship scheme for the training of Ga instructors to boost interest in the learning of the language among the youth.
Dr Emmanuel Lamptey, the Ga Municipal Chief Executive, urged all residents in the Municipality to support the sanitation agenda of the Assembly by devoting some effort to maintain their environments and also ensure proper spatial planning to prevent flooding and the occurrence of other disasters.
Mr Osafo Marfo later presented office logistics including desks, chairs, computers and stationary as an initial set-up from the government to the Assembly.
Source: GNA