The chiefs believe the creation of the new region will help fast-track development in the area.

Residents in Bono East and Ahafo, led by their chiefs and various interest groups, presented two petitions to the Presidential Commission for the creation of the Bono East Region and the Ahafo Region out of the Brong Ahafo Region.

Whilst the Ahafo Council of Chiefs is championing the creation of the Ahafo Region, their counterparts, the Coalition of Bono East Chiefs are pushing for the creation of Bono East region.

Leading the charge on behalf of the people and chiefs of Bono East at a public hearing organized by the Commission on the creation of new regions in the Brong Ahafo, the Adontehene of Techiman Traditional Council, Nana Barimah Baffour Asare Twi Obrempong said the creation of the new region was necessary and important for the transformation of the the socio-economic statuses of residents in the area.

“Looking at the human resource, we think if a separate region is created, we will be able to use that human resource in developing the area that we have,” he stated.

He added that the creation of the region will afford people in the area the opportunity to participate in the governance and decentralization processes of the country by empowering them to initiate and implement their own sustainable development interventions.

“If we have the chance, we are very confident that with a regional hospital, the health needs of our people would be addressed, educational development will be improved and enhanced. It will aslso give us the numbers to fully participate in good governance and deliberations at both the national and regional house of chiefs”, he stated.

Barimah Baffour Asare Twi lamented the poor road network in the area, noting that the creation of the region will speed up the construction of the access routes to and from the area to facilitate the carting of goods and services for development.

“We have a lot of challenges in terms of infrastructure, the road networks are very bad and terrible and we know that when allocations are made in terms of road networks, they are done on a statutory basis and on regional context. So with our region, we can boost of a fair share of the national cake”, he opined.

He assured of the traditional council’s preparedness to assist all stakeholders to make their work successful.

The Chairman of the Commission, Justice Stephen Alan Brobbey explained the work of the commission was to look into submitted petitions to satisfactorily identify actual need and demand for the creation of new regions, make recommendations to the President based on their findings and specify the issues to be determined by a referendum.

“We are therefore here to take your views on the demand for the creation of the new region and what has been described as Bono East Region. This is a matter of significant and national importance that requires wide consultations, as many people as possible must be involved because you are carving something not for your sake or our present generation alone but for posterity and the future generations yet unborn”, he explained.

Justice Alan Brobbey assured that the commission will be guided by Article 5 of the 1992 Constitution and ensure the calls for the creation of the new regions were demand-driven and therefore tasked petitioners to back their demands and claims with proof and evidence to make a solid case for their request.

The Brong Ahafo Regional Minister, in his welcome address, appealed to petitioners to motivate and educate their people to come out in their numbers to vote at the referendum to satisfy the required constitutional mandate for the creation of the new region.

He said that carving out new regions will benefit the entire area in terms of job opportunities and infrastructural development.

The Commission had earlier on paid courtesy calls on the Head of Decentralized Departments and the Brong Ahafo Regional House of Chiefs, where similar interactions took place.

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By: Mashoud Kombat/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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According to him, the traditional authorities were key stakeholders in the plan which government believes will help accelerate development in the Western part of the country.

In an address at the meeting, Dan Botwe said the quest to divide some existing regions in the country dated back to the 1980s.

He said research into the matter has revealed that traditional leaders from some parts of the selected regions had written letters some 30 years back asking for this division to ensure holistic development and the government was going to facilitate the process.

The meeting was held under the theme: “Traditional Authority and Regional Reorganisation”.

The Minister said although it was a manifesto promise by the two leading political parties, the idea to have extra regions “really came from the people on the ground and their quest to experience local governance”.

The Regional, Reorganisation and Development Minister said despite the desire, the carving of new regions could not be done out of the constitution adding, “we will follow due process of setting up the commission of enquiries to do further engagement and end the process with a referendum.”

Mr Kofi Dwamesi, Minister for Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, said it is important to engage the traditional authorities and ask for their support in the implementation process.

He said despite the many chieftaincy issues bedevilling the institution, their contribution to national development could not be overruled.

Mr Dwamesi said the government has increased the allowances of Paramount Chiefs and enhanced their operational budget to ensure efficiency.

Dr Kwaku Afriyie, Western Regional Minister, said the Region holds the key to the development of the country with its numerous natural resources.

He said the creation of new regions and particularly the Western North was purely for development and nothing more.
Dr Afriyie entreated the chiefs to support governments fight against illegal mining and help maintain peace in the Region.

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Source: GNA

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