The Minister of Roads and Highways, Kwesi Amoako Atta has threatened to sack road contractors who insult President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and the government.
He said contracts of individuals who use negative comments about the President will be terminated.
He said “I don’t care if he insults just me but if he involves the President in issues involving my sector, I will not allow it. Any road contractor who will peddle falsehood and insult the President and it is proven; I will take steps to terminate that contract immediately.”
He announced as part of Nana Addo‘s commencement of his 3-day tour of the Eastern Region where he inspected on-going road projects in the region.
In July this year, road contractors demanded payment of their outstanding arrears from the government.
In December 2018, the government announced that it will release GH¢2 billion to settle some arrears owed them early next year but the contractors bemoaned the government’s failure to pay the debts owed them.
According to the Ghana Road Contractors Association, its members are struggling to defray loans they took from banks to execute the projects as interest on such loans increases.
The association said the government owes its members GH¢1.9 billion, which they said is having an impact on their businesses.
Willliam Apraku Bondzie, National Treasurer of the association in an interview on Accra-based Citi FM, called on the government to draft a policy that will award road contracts based on its budget.
“What we think can be done is that the government must have a policy that: if every year, the government has a budget of say GH¢20 million, and then he proposes 20 million jobs so that when the job is done 20 million is paid, period. Then progressively, year after year, we expand the road network according to the budget that we have,” he said.
