Constituency watch : New Juaben South development on course
Lying at the foothills of the scenic Obuotabiri Mountain, which draws a lot of local and foreign tourists all year round, is the New Juaben South Constituency.
The constituency, with the southern part of Koforidua as its capital, is also home to four senior high schools (SHSs) - Oti Boateng SHS, New Juaben SHS, Koforidua Senior High Technical School and Pentecost SHS.
It is also home to two tertiary institutions, Koforidua Technical University and the All Nations University, making it the educational hub of the Eastern Region.
Apart from that, it is a vibrant business centre where traders from neighbouring towns and communities converge to engage in all kinds of merchandise such as textile products and foodstuffs, particularly on Mondays and Thursdays, which are the main market days.
Traditionally, it is the headquarters of the New Juaben Paramountcy where the paramount chief resides in the Yiadom Hwedie Palace, an architectural masterpiece as compared to the palaces of all the traditional areas in the region.
The constituency, with a total land area of 43 square kilometres, is composed of 34 electoral areas whose accredited representatives (assembly members) usually jostle for development projects for their communities from the assembly’s limited resources.
Political history
It was carved out from the parent New Juaben Constituency in 2004 due to an increase in population to enable the Member of Parliament (MP) for the area to cater for the needs of the people in the various electoral areas in the constituency.
The constituency has been the stronghold of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) since 2000, with Michael Okyere Baafi being the incumbent Member of Parliament (MP) while Isaac Appaw-Gyasi holds sway as the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for years. The only period the National Democratic Congress (NDC) occupied the seat in the Fourth Republic was between 1992 and 1996.
For instance, in 1992 when the NPP boycotted the general election, the late David Sarpong Boateng, popularly known as D.S. Boateng, virtually had no challenger as he occupied the seat for four years. Since then, the NPP has been winning the seat with ease, dislodging not only the NDC but the other political parties as well.
Yaw Barimah was the first NPP MP for the constituency and occupied the seat for three terms (1996-2004). He was followed by Beatrice Bernice Boateng (2008-2012), and Dr Mark Assibey Yeboah (2012-2020) while the current MP, Michael Okyere Baafi (2020) is lacing his boots to contest for a second term.
Michael Okyere Baafi, the MP for New Juaben South, has distributed bicycles to some constituents
At the 2020 NPP parliamentary primaries, Mr Baafi secured 372 votes to beat Dr Assibey Yeboah, who had 200 votes. Mr Baafi followed up with a resounding victory at the 2020 general election when he garnered 47,862 votes, representing 69.90 per cent, to beat Martin Otu Offei, who had 20,164 votes (29.45 per cent), while Adwoa Petra Penianah, who represented Ghana United Movement (GUM), had 447 votes (0.65 per cent).
While Mr Baafi is ready for the 2024 general election, it is not certain whether Dr Assibey Yeboah will come into the fray again. In the meantime, no other person has come out openly to contest the incumbent.
Should Mr Baafi come out victorious, he might face a stiff challenge from the NDC candidate, Dr Martin Otu Offei. But the obvious choice of the electorate will depend on the development agenda of the MP and the popularity of Dr Offei, who also contested the 2020 polls.
Unlike other constituencies which have the MP and the MCE from different political parties as a result of which they have seen some development, the New Juaben South Constituency has the two top politicians coming from the same political party, the NPP.
This has made it easy for the assembly to formulate and implement development programmes or projects, as well as poverty alleviation schemes for the people, especially the needy.
Demographics/Dynamics
Out of a population of 125,256, made up of 60,567 males and 64,689 females, 94,000 were eligible voters in respect of the 2020 general election. Almost the same number might again determine the person to represent them in Parliament when the country goes to the polls in December 2024.
Although the constituency can be described as a safe seat for the NPP, the party is not leaving any stone unturned in its activities, especially the provision of social amenities, which some communities have benefited from.
Some of the amenities are a market for the Zango community, which has also witnessed an improvement in its drainage system, the construction of a three-unit Kindergarten (KG) classroom block also in the same area, a six-unit classroom block for Ellen White Primary & JHS at Srodae, a two-unit classroom block for Nana Kwaku Boateng Basic School at Atekyem, and a two-unit KG classroom block for Trinity Presby School at Adweso.
The rest are the rehabilitation centre and dormitory for the homeless, especially children at Nyamekrom, the warehouse, the Assembly complex, and footbridges across the constituency, all of which will be advantageous to the NPP, especially Mr Baafi.
Mr Baafi has also boosted his chances with a presentation of 500 bicycles to pupils and students, as well as a scholarship package for 2,000 students in tertiary institutions.
The MP, who recently visited some of the project sites, was optimistic about carrying the day come December 7, 2024.
Similarly, the NDC is also making frantic efforts to make history by snatching the constituency seat from the NPP at the polls. In that respect, the NDC has been propagating its development programmes in all the communities to help achieve its goals.
Development projects
A new astro turf at Betom Methodist Basic School
Generally, the constituency has since its creation in 2004 witnessed a lot of development projects in all the electoral areas.
While some have been completed and handed over to the communities such as two AstroTurf pitches at Betom Methodist Basic School and the Sarkodie Basic School, others are at various stages of completion.
There is also an asphalting overlay of some roads such as the Hospital Road, the B. Foster-Effiduase road, Old Estate main road, Marshal Lodge Road, Minyila Road, High Court Road, Zion School Road, Central Mosque Road, Kantudu Road, Zango selected roads and Ghana Commercial Road (GCR), among others.
On education, the MP said he had done a lot to improve that sector with many initiatives in a special programme launched in 2022.
He said through the programme, he donated 150 tablets and other Information and Communications Technology (ICT) equipment to some basic schools within the constituency.
Apart from that, he has been organising special classes for third-year pupils of junior high schools (JHSs) to equip them to do well at the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) and be admitted into SHS.
Michael Okyere Baafl — MP, New Juaben South
Mr Baafi also plans to assist 50 SHS science students who would come out with flying colours to pursue engineering programmes at the university. That, the MP explained, would make it possible for such high-calibre professionals to help in the development of the area.
With regard to health, Mr Baafi said he had organised a series of blood donation exercises to encourage the people in the constituency to donate blood to reduce the shortage of blood at the Eastern Regional Hospital Blood Bank.
That, he pointed out, would make the availability of blood at all times for patients who needed it to save their lives.
Work on the asphalting overlay of roads in the constituency progressing steadily
MCE speaks
Isaac Appaw-Gyasi — MCE for New Juaben South
The Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for the area, Isaac Appaw-Gyasi, told the Daily Graphic that a lot of development projects had been accomplished and mentioned the Nsukwao Drainage Project, which had drastically reduced flooding in the constituency.
Other projects which had also been completed were the assembly's new Administrative Block, the district court complex, the Zango Market, classroom blocks at Simpoamiensa, Nana Kwaku Boateng Basic Schools and Nyamekrom, among others.
Mr Appaw-Gyasi said the assembly had constructed a new building to house the area's district court, as well as the Jackson Park Redevelopment Project to give the constituency a facelift.
The MCE indicated that since the Koforidua Central Market was dear to his heart, being the busiest trading outpost in the constituency, his outfit, together with the MP, would reconstruct it to become a modern facility.
However, residents in the constituency had divergent views about the rate of development in the area.
Residents
Jones Asare, who sells provisions near the Koforidua Polyclinic, was full of praise for the MP who, according to him, had generally done well within a relatively short period of less than three years.
A trader at the Koforidua Central Market, Beatrice Opoku, said the market constructed many years ago did not have access lanes for fire engines during fire outbreaks.
She, however, praised the MP for organising special classes for JHS final-year students to enable them to perform creditably.
Mohammed Nuhu, a resident at Koforidua Zango, told the Daily Graphic that he was worried about the bad roads in the area, whose rehabilitation he said were long overdue.
Writer's email
haruna.wunpini@graphic.com.gh