Suame interchange project begins September - Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu assures after crowd booed and pelted him with water sachet

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament for Suame, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, has given an assurance that the proposed Suame Interchange project will begin in September, 2022.

According to him, Parliament would meet Tuesday to discuss a loan facility from Spain for the four-tier interchange to commence.

He was speaking to Graphic Online on Monday (July 18, 2022) after a planned meeting with residents to address concerns about the project was met with a protest by scores of spare parts dealers at the Suame Magazine enclave over the delay in starting the project, reports Daniel Kenu from Kumasi.

The protests nearly turned chaotic and the police were brought in to provide security and to keep the people at bay.

According to the protesters, the MP, who is also the Majority Leader and Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, had not done enough to get the project started at the Suame Roundabout and to also fix the potholes on the roads.

Pelted with sachet water

Last Friday, the artisans nearly attacked a 4x4 vehicle which passed by the area and tried to swerve the pothole section of the road.

When Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu got to the area Friday mid morning, together with the MCE for the area, they got off their vehicle, looked at the portion of the road which had been complained about by the artisans in the area.

They decided to walk on the road for about one kilometre, but just about 400 metres into the walk towards the Maakro area, the crowd gathered, started chanting songs and pelted them with sachet water.

At some point, a sachet of water hit someone who was close to the MP for the area, burst and splashed on them, including Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu.

Videos of the incident have been shared on social media.

Sympathy

Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu however told Graphic Online that as a result of the planned interchange, which would lead to the redesign of the main Suame-Offinso road, it was not possible to embark on any major reconstruction apart from patching the road in a few places.

He sympathised with the business community in the area for the stress they were going through and the fact that they had to water their frontage every morning to avoid being engulfed in dust.

Address

Later, a few of the leadership of the dealers met with the Majority Leader at the upper terrace of a nearby bank to explain why the project had delayed.

He told the people that the local contractors tasked for the overlay had run out of asphalt but had been able to secure some from Cote d’Ivoire and would begin work in earnest.

"I assure you that within the next three days, the contractor will be on site to commence the asphalt overlay," he said.

The Majority Leader said the interchange was at the heart of government and once Parliament gave the green light for the loan facility, the project would take off.