Ghanaian politricks at its best. Nana Akuffo-Addo thought he had a winning idea whilst campaigning through the Western Region, promising to indulge a long held wish of some residents for the region to be split into two.
But it hasn’t taken long for the NDC to counter, claiming that they already have that plan in the pipeline.
Nana Addo, during a recent campaign swing through Bodi, an NDC stronghold and one of the areas most clamouring for the change, said he would create another region in the area as residents have long been clamouring for.
The rationale is that the region is too big, and has too many resources to be confined to one.
Nana Addo agreed with the premise, and promised to get it done if elected.
“It is, thus, about time the ‘Western-North’ became its own separate, independent region. We are going to do that in Nana Akufo-Addo’s government. The Constitution (Article 5) has created ways by which this can happen, and we will go through the prescribed methods towards achieving this,” he said.
But NDC MP for the area, Sampson Ahi, said Nana Addo is behind the times on the move. He said they have already initiated steps to look into the feasibility of the move.
“We have started working on it.” Mr Ahi told Citi Fm Friday. “In fact, when you check in the last 6 March [Independence day]address of the Western Regional Minister, he said emphatically that he has received a request from people living in the northern part of the Western Region about the need to create a region and so he knows and he mentioned this.
“We are in the process of forwarding it to His Excellency the President for consideration.” he added.