Work for good of Tema - E.T. Mensah urges Tema assembly

A member of the Council of State, Mr Enoch Teye Mensah, has urged members of the Tema Metropolitan Assembly (TMA) to put aside political differences and work for the common good of Tema.

He said political differences needed not be synonymous with enmity, using himself as an example.

He said he was a long-time friend of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and that their friendship continued to date even though President Akufo-Addo was a New Patriotic Party (NPP) member, while he was a leading member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

He made the call during the general assembly session of the TMA.

The meeting was also attended by the NDC Member of Parliament (MP) for Tema East, Mr Isaac Ashai Odamtten.

Relationships

Mr Mensah, who is also a former MP for Ningo-Prampram, said he and President Akufo-Addo had been close friends when they were both in Parliament.

He also revealed that he was an in-law to Mr Kojo Mpiani, a leading member of the NPP who was Chief of Staff to former President John Agyekum Kufuor, explaining that he became Mpiani’s in-law when his daughter got married to the son of Mr Mpiani in the United States of America (USA).

Insights

With his rich experience in governance, Mr Mensah was asked a number of questions by Assembly Members, including a request to provide insights into a constant turf war that the TMA was having with the Tema Development Corporation (TDC) and the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA).

In response, Mr Mensah said so far as the Tema Metropolis was concerned, the TMA had both the executive and administrative authority to govern as the metropolitan body of the Ministry of Local Government.

Mr Mensah, who himself is a resident of Tema and a former minister of Works and Housing, touched on some of his achievements as Works and Housing minister, as well as achievements in the Youth and Sports Ministry, said the metropolis’ water supply was suffering negative impact because the Kpong water treatment plant which was set-up by Ghana’s first President, Dr Kwame Nkrumah, and later retrofitted by former President Mills, now lacked the capacity to satisfy the increased population of Tema.