Come for your hat when you finish our road – Tumu chiefs tell Mahama

The chiefs of Tumu have conveyed a clear message to President John Dramani Mahama: while they provided him with a smock, his hat remains. Speaking on behalf of the Tumu Traditional Council, Mr. Godfred Kanton detailed the significance of the symbol to the Roads and Highways Minister, Kwame Agbodza. The smock was presented by the chiefs to honour President Mahama when he visited Sissala the previous year and promised to repair the poor condition of the Wa-Tumu Road.

However, the chiefs held onto the hat, vowing to return it solely upon the President's visit to officially commission the completed road.

Mr. Kanton stated that for the first time, the people of Sissala are witnessing tangible road improvements, allowing them to travel from Tumu to Wa within a single day. He expressed his joy at seeing the development and thanked the President for his efforts. However, he urged the government to compensate contractors to ensure the work continues and to improve the road leading to the Overlord’s Palace.

The minister, standing at a strategic T-Junction with trucks from Burkina Faso, emphasized the importance of treating the junction differently due to its critical location. He provided a timeline, hopeful that by the end of next year, the roads connecting Wa to Tumu would be free of disruptions.

Regarding funding, Agbodza disclosed that the Mahama administration had disbursed more funds to road contractors than any previous government in such a short span. He acknowledged the inherited broken economy with significant debts, including a GHC 10 billion payment and a GHC 3 billion allocation for the failed Cocoa Board. Next year, an additional GHC 53 billion was projected.

He assured the Overlord that the completion of the Wa-Tumu highway, World Bank feeder roads, and the border road during the first term would represent the largest-ever direct government investment in Sissala. The President's hat, a royal collateral for the promise, remains in Tumu, signifying the ongoing wait for the fulfillment of the promise by the end of 2026.