Residents of Sewua in the Bosomtwe District of the Ashanti Region have vowed to block the government’s commissioning of the Ashanti Regional Hospital unless their neglected road is repaired immediately.
Speaking to Orange News’ Fatawu Bayaga, Prince Kwame Adutwum, the Assembly member for the Sewua Electoral Area, revealed that the road was originally slated for construction by the government.
However, it has since been abandoned, severely impacting transportation and worsening living conditions in the community.
Mr. Adutwum, along with other frustrated residents, issued a stern warning that they would prevent the hospital’s commissioning if the road remains in disrepair.
One resident expressed their frustration, stating, “I have completed school and come to work. My master put up a shop but the shop was taken out of it’s original position because they mentioned they were coming to construct the road. Now, I am home with no work and no food to eat.”
Another resident lamented, “It’s been three years since the road was destroyed, and we were promised repairs. Up until now, nothing has been done.”
Residents noted that the poor state of the road poses serious challenges, particularly for pregnant women and the sick.
One resident shared, “It has been about three years since the road was dismantled and we were told they were coming to repair it but up until today, we have not heard them say anything about coming to repair it anymore.”
Another added, “After building hospitals and schools, how do you expect us to access them? Pregnant women have even given birth on the way because of the bumpy road.”
Scheduled to be commissioned this year, the Ashanti Regional Hospital’s operationalisation is said to have been delayed due to the state of the road.
The project is expected to ease pressure on the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH), Ghana’s second-largest referral facility, when it becomes operational.
Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia assured that the facility was going to be commissioned in July during a meeting with some professional bodies as part of his three-day tour of the Ashanti Region in June this year.
Despite Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia’s assurance of a July commissioning date in June, the hospital remains uncommissioned.
Residents are expressing their discontent and have threatened to prevent any government official from commissioning the hospital until the road is fixed.
The residents have also accused the government of neglecting their main road and have decided to construct a road linking Feyase to the hospital, a situation they find worrying.
Tensions are rising in Sewua, and there is a risk of escalation if the government does not promptly address the community’s concerns.
Report by: Fatawu Bayaga
