Jean Mensa
The Electoral Commission (EC) may be forced to take courageous decisions on the creation of an additional constituency in the Oti Region following the maturation of a Legislative Instrument (LI) laid in Parliament by the Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Hajia Halima Mahama.
Celebrated for her brazenness, Jean Mensa may throw caution to the wind and create the new Constituency before December 7 under the guise of ‘we are mandated by law to do it’.
Guan District made up of Santrofi, Akpafu, Likpe, and Lolobi (SALL) in the Oti Region has been created following the maturity of a Legislative Instrument (LI).
This was after the 21 mandatory parliamentary sitting days in the Legislature last Friday.
Six districts have also been upgraded to Municipal status with Jasikan District standing as a separate district following the maturity of their respective LI including the Local Government (Jasikan District Assembly) (Establishment) Instrument, 2020.
The establishment of the new Guan District will now lead to the creation of one more constituency by the Electoral Commission (EC) in the Oti Region and this will bring the total number of constituencies in the country to 276.
The Guan District was previously part of the Hohoe Municipal (District Electoral Areas and Designation of Units) Instrument, 2014. C. I. 85.
However, the area was placed in the Oti Region in the Referendum (Creation of New Regions) Regulations, 2018 C. I. 109 of 30th November 2018 as recommended by the Commission of Inquiry into the creation of the six new regions.
Consequently, Guan was made part of the Oti Region in Oti Region Instrument, 2019 C. I. 112 on 8th February 2019.
It was also included in the Jasikan District in the Oti Region as provided in the District Electoral Areas and Designation of Unit Assemblies.
However, the government has now created it as a new district with the maturity in the parliament of Local Government (Guan District Assembly) (Establishment) Instrument, 2020.
Six Districts upgraded to Municipal Statuses included Krachi West Municipal Assembly, Kwahu South Municipal Assembly.
The rest were Akatsi South Municipal Assembly, Asante Akim North Municipal Assembly, and Builsa North Municipal Assembly.
In June 2017, the chiefs, and people of Oti petitioned President Akufo-Addo for the new region for the northern part of Volta, which was made up of eight administrative districts.
The petition was for and on behalf of the chiefs and people of Biakoye, Nkwanta South, Kadjebi, Jasikan, Krachi West, Krachi Nchumuru, Krachi East and Nkwanta North, as well as Santrokofi, Akpafu, Lolobi and Likpe traditional areas under the Hohoe Municipality.
The Oti region covers about 12,000 out of the about 20,000 square kilometers total land area of the Volta region.
It has an estimated total population of about 700,000, who are mostly into food and cash crops farming, as well as fishing due to the presence of River Oti and Lake Volta.
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