Former Minister for Special Development Initiatives, and Member of Parliament for Awutu Senya East Constituency, Hawa Koomson has denied claims that she imposed projects on the various constituencies when she was a Minister in the first term of the NPP-Government.
According to her, the projects her ministry executed were rather based on the needs assessment of the various constituencies in addition to government’s priority projects.
This was after she listed some projects her ministry executed in the first term of Akufo-Addo’s Government.
Debunking the notion that she imposed projects on the constituencies during her vetting in Parliament, she said, “We did the needs assessment, but these projects that I have mentioned are government priority projects.”
She added, “We had two approaches for our projects; that is the bottom-up approach, which is from the constituencies and top-down approach which is government’s priority. So the Ministry executed that of the government priority projects. These are all needs assessment projects.”
Achievements
When asked to list some achievements of her then ministry, Hawa Koomson said,”We are all aware that this was a new ministry, created by Nana Addo Dankwah Akufo-Addo, and so I led in setting up the Ministry. I also took to the establishment of the three development authorities that is coastal, middle and Northern Development authorities.”
She continued that,”When the Ministry was created, we had to start with the needs assessment in the various constituencies to wait for the appointments of the CEOs of the development Authorities, so we did all these up to the whole of 2017 till 2018 when they were appointed.”
She said her ministry constructed toilet facilities across the country.
“We had also started with some work that was construction of toilet facilities across the country, construction of water systems across the country, Every constituency had its fair share of the project. We also led the construction of one district one warehouse,” she said.
Hawa Koomson also boasted of the 370 ambulances and 10,000 hospital beds procured under her tenure.
“One of the projects I did that gladdens my heart was the procurement of the 370 ambulances for ‘one constituency, one ambulance’.
Another one was the procurement of the 10,000 hospital beds for various hospitals in the country to ease the no bed syndrome in the system,” she said.
She said the development authorities also continued the projects from where she left it.
Touching on the research vessel promised by President Nana Akufo-Addo in 2017 which has not yet been procured, Hawa Koomson said she will do her best to consult the appropriate consultants and pick it up from there.
Ghana| Atinkaonline.com| Porcia Oforiwaa Ofori