Nurudeen Salifu, Buipe
IT is just a year and two months since Mr Samuel Abdulai Jabanyite assumed office as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Chereponi.
He emerged victorious in a by-election in that constituency on October 27, 2009.
Mr Jabanyite has, however, already risen above expectations to prove to his people that they made no mistake in electing him into office.
A former assembly member having the zeal to bring positive change under a regime already promising a ‘Better Ghana’, Mr Jabanyite has set out to improve the welfare of his people beyond what a legislator could do.
Despite his short stay in parliament, the MP has brought significant progress to his constituency.
He has spearheaded development activities in sectors such as education, health, agriculture, water, institutional capacity building and good governance.
Education is probably the area that has received the greatest support from the MP since he assumed office. With funding from the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) and the Northern Regional Poverty Reduction Programme (NORPREP), the MP has initiated many educational projects in his constituency.
The projects include the construction of six-unit classroom blocks at Asari, Waku and Konaka-Bosu; three-unit classroom blocks at Tacheiku, Gilma, Masawusi and Bukasu, and a boys’ dormitory block at the Chereponi Senior High School, which is currently at the documentation stage.
Mr Jabanyite has also provided 700 units of dual desks for 15 schools, in addition to the fabrication of staff furniture for five new schools.
Mr Jabanyite has used his share of the District Assemblies’ Common Fund to settle the fees of 20 students from the district who are in second-cycle and tertiary institutions.
He has used part of those funds to supply sporting kits for 30 schools in the district, as well as support the rehabilitation of a teachers’ quarters at Tambong.
In addition to all those projects, Mr Jabanyite has procured a photocopier cum scanner and printer from his private resources for the Chereponi Senior High School.
On health, the MP, has with funding from the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), provided six sets of delivery and dressing sets for clinics at Bunburiga, Gerinkuka, Wonjuju, Nansoni, Wenchiki and Tombu.
He has also provided the Chereponi Health Centre and the Wenchiki Clinic with a 15-seater Ford Van and a 4x4 Nissan Frontier Pick-Up vehicles.
He said the Ford Van was donated by Dwummoh and Family in Denver Co in the United States of America.
Aside of those initiatives, the MP has supported the Chereponi Health Centre with an auto-clip machine and 100 anti-snake vaccines, which were hitherto in short supply, thereby leading to the demise of victims of snake bites.
Water, they say, is life. Indeed, the lack of potable sources of water has been the challenge facing rural communities and those in the Chereponi district are no exception.
Since assuming office, Mr Jabanyite has used part of his share of the District Assemblies’ Common Fund for the rehabilitation of 10 broken down boreholes in nine communities, including Nanchem, Naboni and Naduni.
Plans are also underway to commence the drilling of 16 more boreholes to be jointly funded by the World Vision, National Security Office and the MPs Common Fund.
“I hope with these projects, water provision in my district would undergo significant improvement,” he told the Daily Graphic.
Indeed, ignoring agriculture would be tantamount to breaking the camel’s back since agriculture is the mainstay of rural communities and, indisputably, the backbone of the nation’s economy.
Mr Jabanyite has personally facilitated the acquisition of 12 new tractors, two shellers and a planter to support the work of farmers in the district.
He has also facilitated the provision of 6,250 bags of fertilisers to farmers at subsidised prices during the previous farming season.
During the celebration of the 2010 Farmers’ Day in the district, Mr Jabanyite donated a motorcycle and three Knapsack sprayers to the district agricultural directorate to be donated to outstanding farmers.
In an interview, the MP said he had also impressed upon the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB) to construct a new dam at Wenchiki for irrigation.
He said another dam would be constructed by the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) in Adali.
As part of efforts to strengthen the work at institutions and departments working in the district, the MP recently presented motorcycles to seven institutions.
They included the Ghana Police Service, the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Service, the Ghana Immigration Service and the National Commission For Civic Education (NCCE).
Currently, Mr Jabanyite is working assiduously with the district chief executive for the area to start a community radio station at Chereponi. Already, he has facilitated the acquisition of the transmission equipment and is waiting for certification from the National Communications Authority (NCA).
With these and many other initiatives being implemented by Mr Jabanyite, the chiefs and people of Chereponi appear to have been impressed by the MP’s performance.
At a recent durbar organised by the MP to give an account of his stewardship so far, the Chief of Chereponi, Feme Jaminja Malba Gomna, commended him for his achievements during his short stay in office.
The chief said the initiatives of the MP had helped in improving the lives of the people, particularly in the areas of health and education.
Malba Gomna, however, entreated the MP not to be complacent but continue to persevere and justify his election as their representative in Parliament.
The DCE for Chereponi, Alhaji Mohammed Issah Seidu Abah, also confirmed the success story of the MP, adding that the assembly would continue to work hand-in-hand with him to enhance the progress of the area.
For now, the question is: “Can the MP’s performance help him retain his seat?”
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