The reigning Minister of Roads and Highways, Kwame Agboza, has blamed deliberate vandalism as the primary cause for the numerous non-functioning visitors lights in Ghana..
He mentioned some unpatriotic people, drivers and repair suppliers usually steal cables and batteries and harm visitors gentle gear.
He mentioned these actions had been the explanation why 65% of the 415 visitors lights stopped working.
“Some unpatriotic residents truly take away the metallic elements of visitors lights and promote them as scrap, simply as they take away metallic grates from drain covers and promote them to folks to make iron bars,” he mentioned.
trip
Agboza, who appeared at a public listening to of the Financial Improvement Committee on Wednesday (June 10), mentioned some folks had stolen batteries and different elements of photo voltaic lamp kits that had been getting used experimentally on some roads.
“There are additionally conditions the place a car collides with a visitors gentle and the car loses management and goes straight forward destroying the sign or management gear.
“And these are costly items of equipment, and in lots of circumstances you possibly can’t confirm who the motive force is after which they get away with it, so we have now to search out the funding to do it,” he mentioned.
sabotage
The Roads Minister mentioned service suppliers not contracted to the ministry usually put in underground cables and invaded sign rooms for causes of comfort.
Within the course of, he mentioned, these service suppliers, who he has declined to publicly identify, broken transportation services.
“So generally, it isn’t due to something that the lights aren’t working, it is simply vandalism,” he says.
He identified that there are about 415 visitors lights on about 60,000 kilometers of roads throughout the nation, and mentioned the issue is that the presence of visitors lights is so low.
Worryingly, he mentioned, although nearly all of cities and cities want visitors lights, solely 65 % of current visitors lights are operational.
He instructed the committee that a part of the explanation why some service suppliers weren’t retained was as a result of “we owe them about GH₵40 million and we’re within the strategy of repaying a few of that debt in order that they’ll work.”
To curb the continued vandalism of visitors lights, Mr Agboza burdened the necessity for service suppliers to improve the requirements of visitors lights with higher expertise.
top quality highway
On upkeep, Mr. Agboza known as on the ministry to allocate satisfactory price range for efficient upkeep work inside the roads sector.
He mentioned many of the nation’s highways, such because the Accra Expressway and the Kumasi Expressway, weren’t match for objective.
He mentioned the federal government had launched the “Large Push” venture to handle these challenges.
He mentioned 2,200 kilometers of highways are being constructed beneath the venture, which is able to guarantee they’re first-class roads constructed to all requirements “discovered anyplace on this planet”.
“We’re not constructing to a decrease customary than anyplace else as a result of we consider in Ghana’s capabilities as engineers, we consider in our capabilities as contractors, and we all know that what we wish is what’s greatest for us,” he mentioned.
He mentioned provided that Large Push initiatives value some huge cash, the federal government had been insisting that each greenback put into each nook and cranny of the highway ought to be absolutely thought-about when it comes to velocity and high quality.
“And our group goes to verify we get that finished, partially as a result of delays in any highway venture harm folks’s pockets. Delays include extra prices and fluctuations,” he mentioned.
No shabby initiatives
Mr Agboza instructed the committee that the nation had a venture portfolio of no less than GH₵110 billion on the finish of 2024, with excellent debt amounting to virtually GH₵40 billion with curiosity.
“A part of it additionally consists of curiosity on late funds, so we can’t settle for that within the price range,” he mentioned.
The Minister asserted that the times of contractors doing shoddy work and strolling away at will are over.
“We’re making an attempt to construct the perfect roads, as a result of whenever you say you are constructing a highway that is going to final six years, it has to final no less than six years if it is maintained,” he mentioned.
He added that the majority highway initiatives sponsored by growth companions had been stalled because of debt restructuring.
Nevertheless, he mentioned the federal government had since succeeded in restarting among the highway initiatives, together with the expressway to Central College and a part of the Ashaiman roundabout to Atipok.
However he mentioned initiatives like Bolgatanga Bauku Purmakom “fully disappeared as a result of they had been industrial agreements and couldn’t be revived.”
“The president has directed that each one of this could come collectively as a part of the following part of the Nice Push,” he mentioned.
