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The Greater Accra Regional Minister, Daniel Nii Titus Glover, has urged The Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to spend within their budgetary limits in order to avoid cost overruns.
They are also to observe “strict procurement rules” as much as possible in order to reduce audit infractions in their expenditures.
“As we are aware, electioneering activities would headline the fourth quarter and this will come with its own consequential challenges in revenue mobilisation as such, we are advised to put in full force activities outlined in our revenue improvement action plans as we wind-up this third quarter,” he added.
Mr Glover made these remarks at the first meeting of the Greater Accra Regional Coordinating Council in Accra yesterday.
The meeting, which brought together Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chiefs, their Presiding Members and unit heads of the assemblies, sought to offer the participants the opportunity to brainstorm on their performance towards taking concrete steps to meet their budgetary targets.
He also indicated that his stint with the private sector and busi
ness world had given him a broad overview of how the MMDAs were developing, they must therefore show clear focus and direction as leaders at the lower level by engaging all stakeholders in their actions and activities.
The Regional Minister further stated that Accra being the national capital alone puts a lot of stress and strain on them which calls for improved service delivery, adding that, “We will not renege on these oars as we must put forth a front foot to indiscipline situations in order win the sanitation war, through sustaining the gains and building on the blocks already laid.”
Moreover, Mr Glover explained his three key priority areas included sanitation and waste management, fixing non-functioning street and traffic lights, and prioritising security issues in the region.
He said plans were far advanced to distribute solar street lights to the MMDAs to improve security, especially the highways and the municipalities.
He also said a massive clean-up campaign subsequent to the operation “Clean Your Frontage” had also started with support from the Ga Traditional council, the security services and Zoomlion.
So far, Mr Glover highlighted that Accra Metro, Korle Klottey, Ayawaso Central, and Ablekuma Central Municipal Assemblies had organised the Homowo Clean-up exercise with more than 100 tonnes of garbage, including silt and plastics evacuated to various final disposal sites and urged all MMDAs to attach seriousness to the exercise to ensure its sustainability.
He expressed regret over the massive encroachment in four different Ramsar sites, thus increasing flooding in the region, the Dodowa Forest has also been encroached and advised the developers to remove them or have them demolished for them.
“MMDAs by section 12(3) (a) of the Local Governance Act, 2016 (Act 936) are responsible for the overall development of their districts, and are therefore responsible for development control in these environmentally sensitive areas,” he added.
The Minister urged those selling and rearing livestock on the Dr Hilla Limann Highway to stop that level of indiscipline since the RCC would not countenance such wrong doing.
Mr Glover again charged MMDAs without Presiding Members to find new strategies to have them elected.
BY LAWRENCE VOMAFA-AKPALU
