The Kassena-Nankana West District Chief Executive (DCE), Hon. Stephen Akurugo Aeke has charged the management and staff of the Assembly to strengthen interdepartmental collaboration for effective service delivery to the public as well as, to hasten the execution of developmental projects. “You should not, for instance see the sanitation issues in the district as being solely a matter for environmental health but ask yourself what complementary role your own department can play to add up”, the DCE stated.
He was speaking at his maiden staff durbar held on Friday, May 23, 2025 at the Assembly’s conference hall, following his formal assumption of duty on May 5, 2025. He had earlier on May 9, held a similar meeting with the Assembly’s management, where each head of department/unit made brief presentations on the mandate of their outfits and other relative matters.
The DCE said the staff durbar was to afford him the opportunity to meet all the staff on one platform, introduce himself to them, and also to hear what they had to share with him for the work and progress of the Assembly in developing the communities it exists to serve.
Hon. Akurugo urged the staff of the Assembly to continue to work hard, though he acknowledged resource constraints and other challenges they faced. He assured them that he will remain committed to seeing a well-motivated workforce, stressing he will discuss with the coordinating director to see how best to appreciate efforts of the staff under the circumstances.
According to the DCE, health, sanitation, education, roads, and other crucial infrastructure will receive adequate attention under his administration, emphasizing that sanitation needs peculiar attention as the President, H.E John Dramani Mahama recently made public pronouncements that it will be a vital indicator in scoring the work of Assemblies across the country. He also disclosed that in the coming weeks, management will go on inspection of ongoing SOCO projects and that, defaulting contractors will be reprimanded while the SOCO phase three cycle of projects will roll out soon.
Hon. Akurugo thanked President Mahama for nominating him among other equally qualified party folks and promised to put forward his best efforts as the President’s Rep. in the Kassena-Nankana West area. He also commended the assembly members for his one-touch confirmation, saying it signaled the President made the right choice in him as he pledged to pull all stakeholders along as he administers the district.
The District Coordinating Director, Mr. Abubakari Amadu, in his earlier remarks to set the tone for the day’s proceedings, observed that from 2020 to date, resource flow to the Assembly has not been in the best of shapes and prayed government will double its efforts in that direction so as to fast-track the achievement of set developmental goals. Mr. Amadu also urged all heads of department to give adequate mentorship to their staff so that their offices do not pull the breaks in the event of their unavailability.
The DCD also entreated his department and unit heads to get involved in the Assembly’s budget preparation and make inputs relevant to their specific departments in order that they don’t get left out in resource allocation for the discharge of their mandates.
REPORT BY PETER ATOGEWE WEDAM
DISTRICT INFORMATION OFFICER