Bolga-Bawku-Polimakom road contractor will return to site – Asenso-Boakye assures

The Minister of Roads and Highways, Francis Asenso-Boakye, has said that the contractor working on the abandoned 117.74-kilometre Bolgatanga-Bawku-Polimakom road project is remobilising to return to site to complete the project.

“This is my firm assurance to the people of the Upper East Region that the contractor would come back to the site as soon as possible to see to the completion of the road project to bring relief to motorists and other users,” he stressed.

So far, 70 kilometres (km) of the €127 million road project has been completed and opened to traffic, while work is currently ongoing on the construction of three main bridges, namely the Kulaa Bridge, which is 30 per cent completed, the Tilli Bridge over the Red Volta, which is 80 per cent completed, and an additional one at Kobore over the White Volta, which is yet to commence.

Additionally, two bypasses will be constructed as part of the project through Bawku (15km) and Pusiga (6.9km).

That road passes through Bolgatanga Central, Bolgatanga East, Nabdam, Zebilla, Binduri, Bawku Central and Pusiga constituencies.

Tour

The minister gave the assurance while on a day’s tour to inspect some ongoing works on the Kulaa Bridge in Bolgatanga and other road projects in the region.

The minister was accompanied on the tour by some officials of the ministry, as well as officials of the Regional Coordinating Council (RCC) and the Ghana Highways Authority (GHA).

The team also inspected ongoing works on the 10-kilometre Chuchuliga-Sandema road project, which is about 68 per cent complete.

Background

The road project, which began in the latter part of 2016, was expected to be completed in two and a half years.

However, contractors withdrew their equipment from the site for about a year due to the non-payment of arrears.

The preliminary contract sum for the project was pegged at GH¢613 million but was later revised to €127 million.

Two construction firms — Mawums Construction Limited, a Ghanaian company, and Queiroz Galvao of Brazil — were awarded the contract.

The Ghanaian firm has already completed its part of the project.

Amendments

Mr Asenso-Boakye stated that at the request of the contractor, the project was halted for a while as the construction firm needed some amendments to be made to the project to pave the way for its continuation.

He said, “It was one of the decisions I made when I took over as the new sector minister and all the necessary amendments to the road project have been resolved since the project is dear to the heart of the government.”

He stated that the government was committed to completing the road project and other ongoing ones to ease transportation within the region, saying “It is essential that the roads are improved to bring huge relief to the people.”

On the Chuchuliga-Sandema road, he was hopeful that by the close of the year, the project would be completed, as its poor state had been a great source of worry for drivers and users.

Interacting with Mr Asenso-Boakye, the District Chief Executive (DCE) for the Builsa South District, Daniel Kwame Gariba, and the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for Builsa North, Vida A. Anaab, appealed for the construction of the town roads within the Fumbisi and Sandema townships.

They stated that the onset of the rains coupled with the development of potholes on the roads, made it very difficult for residents to ply the roads due to their deplorable conditions.

Writer’s email: gilbert.agbey@graphic.com.gh