BY Daniel Bampoe
A dispute over emergency repair works at the Nsawam Presbyterian School has sparked political tensions in the Nsawam-Adoagyiri Municipality in the Eastern Region, with supporters of the area’s Member of Parliament and the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) accusing each other of attempting to take control of rehabilitation efforts following storm damage to the school.
The controversy follows a heavy rainstorm that reportedly ripped off sections of the school’s roofing on Thursday evening, exposing classrooms and raising concerns about the safety of pupils and teachers.
The damage prompted calls for immediate intervention to prevent further deterioration of the affected classrooms, especially with the possibility of additional rainfall.
The Member of Parliament for Nsawam-Adoagyiri, Frank Annoh-Dompreh, who is currently out of town, directed former Municipal Chief Executive officers and party executives to assess the extent of the damage and facilitate emergency repair works.
Arrangements were subsequently made for contractors linked to the MP’s office to begin rehabilitation works on the affected structure.
However, the repair exercise became the centre of a political confrontation on Saturday morning when the Municipal Chief Executive, Fummey Selorm Philibert, opposed the intervention and instructed education authorities not to permit the MP’s contractors to proceed with the work.
The MCE arrived at the project site and attempted to halt the repairs, leading to a heated confrontation between rival political groups.
Confusion erupted at the scene as supporters from both sides exchanged words, with some allegations of physical assaults during the standoff.
The situation escalated to the point where officers from the Ghana Police Service had to intervene to restore order and prevent further disturbances at the school premises.
The disagreement centred largely on who should supervise and take responsibility for the rehabilitation works. While one group insisted that the emergency repairs had been initiated through the intervention of the Member of Parliament, another maintained that the Municipal Assembly should oversee any official works on public infrastructure within the municipality.
As of the latest reports, contractors associated with both the MP’s camp and the Municipal Assembly were said to be present at the school, working on different aspects of the same damaged structure, creating an unusual situation where two separate teams were undertaking repair works at a single project site.
