'Sekondi Takoradi Deserves Better' demo didn't get massive support because residents appreciate ongoing development — Regional Minister

The Western Regional Minister and Member of Parliament for Takoradi, Hon. Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah says the recent demonstration dubbed 'Sekondi Takoradi Deserves Better' did not get the needed support and endorsement because indigenes and residents of the metropolis are appreciative of the ongoing infrastructural development.

In an interview on Empire FM and Radio 360's Weekend News Analysis programme monitored by ModernGhana News, the Western Regional Minister intimated that what the demonstrators were agitating for, is already under construction.

"If you say Sekondi Takoradi deserves better, just look at the infrastructural investment that the NPP government is making in the metropolis. A careful scrutiny by discerning residents brings them to the realisation to be grateful and the one who will say Takoradi deserves better, really may not know what he /she is about. Anyone who acts like that will be like a hungry child who has been served food by the mother and yet still crying for food," the Takoradi MP stated.

He threw a challenge to the organisers to engage him in a debate on the state of the Western Region where he will prove them wrong.

"If they say Western Region deserves better, I will be ready for that debate and outline various projects being executed and we will take it from there. I disagree with their posture because if they had courteously enquired what was being done for the metropolis, I would have been ready to engage them. When they began their agitations on the radio, they were admonished to use a better approach but to no avail. I have personally embarked on a community engagement in various towns explaining and pointing out numerous projects that have been executed. All Sekondi roads have been awarded on contract, Justmoh, Kingspok Construction etc are all working," he posited.

He insisted there was an ulterior motive behind the demonstration other than development.

"Everybody knows there was a political agenda and motive behind all this and I was the target because it is evident development is ongoing in Takoradi. Over 80 percent of the demonstrators are NDC aligned and some of us saw through it, even some radio stations are telling them the demonstration was not apolitical, but such is life so we move on," he remarked.

He advised that entrepreneurship is the key to solving the mounting youth unemployment issues. He noted that most well-to-do industrialists and rich market women got their wealth through entrepreneurship and he is ever ready to assist youths who are willing to engage in entrepreneurship.

"If you want to be rich, you need to be an entrepreneur, life gives us a lot of choices and being an entrepreneur is not a bad choice, no matter the cost of doing business presently, obviously it will be added to the price build-up for you to defray the cost," he emphasised.