The Minority in Parliament has claimed that the government’s District Road Improvement Programme (DRIP) project is originally the brainchild of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) flagbearer, John Dramani Mahama.

They assert that the initiative, recently launched by President Akufo-Addo, was initially introduced by Mahama in July 2016.

On Wednesday, July 31, President Akufo-Addo launched the DRIP intervention and commissioned essential equipment aimed at improving the country’s road networks.

This move was meant to address the longstanding issues of inadequate and poorly maintained roads in various districts.

However, the Minority contends that the project’s initial implementation under Mahama faced significant challenges.

They point to the sale of equipment by state officials in the Bono Region, which led to confusion and dissatisfaction among the local population. This, they argue, should serve as a lesson for the current administration.

In a media interview, the First Deputy Minority Whip in Parliament, Ahmed Ibrahim, emphasized the need for the government to learn from these past mistakes.

He urged the administration to ensure transparency and accountability in the execution of the DRIP project to avoid repeating previous errors.

“We brought it. President Mahama launched the District Road Improvement Programme in July 2016. He brought all the road and earthmoving machines and two months ago, the Bono Regional Minister, together with the Bono people, sold all those machines that President Mahama brought and it brought confusion in Sunyani.”

“Then the NPP communicators in Sunyani, in Bono region met and said they were demonstrating against what their minister and the elders have done. And they were asking about the whereabouts of the equipment that Mahama brought for road construction.”

“So this was Mahama’s brainchild. It is nothing new. So now that we are rejuvenating the same policy, let’s do it well and learn lessons from the previous policy,” he stated.

Source: Myjoyonline.com