PRESIDENT CAUTIONS CHIEF EXECUTIVES TO BE VIGILANT ON CONFLICTS (PAGE 55)

THE President, Mr J.A. Kufuor, has cautioned chief executives of the metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies to be vigilant about indications of tension, confrontation and potential trouble spots in their areas.
In this regard, he noted that discretion was critical.
President Kufuor said this in a speech read on his behalf by the Minister for Chieftaincy and Culture, Mr S.K. Boafo, at the mid-year review conference for metropolitan, municipal and district chief executives (MMDCEs) for the southern sector at Elmina.
He said while chief executives must keep themselves informed, they must also maintain an open mind.
He said since timely action was essential, they should take warning signals seriously, adding that they needed good judgement in order to identify what was real and what was false.
He also advised them against taking sides in any conflict, especially those involving traditional authorities, which must be very carefully managed.
President Kufuor also reminded the chief executives of the problem of waste collection in the cities, and said the sector minister would give instructions to all MMDAs for compliance.
He said the instructions might include the need to procure reliable waste contractors and an agreement signed with them , to which the partnership should include shared reward and burdens as well as timely payment to the contractors.
He, therefore, entreated them to engage contractors who possessed the best qualities since that was critical in a long-term relationship.
The President advised the chief executives to maintain good relationships with all key players including Members of Parliament in their districts, showing courtesies, decorum, effective communication and the willingness to work with them for the good of the district.
He said the establishment of the Local Government Service which had lagged behind in the decentralisation process had been initiated and considerable progress made in the arrangement to decouple it from the main civil service since the decoupling policy was launched at the end of last year.
The Minister of Local Government, Rural Development and the Environment, Mr Kwadwo Adjei-Darko, reminded the chief executives to initiate ways of mobilising their internal resources to augment whatever they received from the Common Fund.
He said 50 out of the 138 MMDAs assessed on the Functional Organisation Assessment Tools for 2006 might be able to access the District Development Fund.
He reminded them of citizenship participation in governance.
The Central Regional Minister, Nana Ato Arthur, said although global environment had become harsh these days, the future of the country seemed bright.
He said a lot of achievements had been made over the past seven years with the support and efforts of MMDCEs.
The Omanhen of the Oguaa Traditional Area, Osabarima Kwesi Atta, urged the assemblies that had not set up internal audit units to do so without delay to ensure accountability and transparency in their procurement transactions.