The people of Walewale in the Northern Region are demanding answers as to why lands allocated for a Watermelon Processing Factory and a 100-bed capacity hospital have now been turned into a maize farm.
On December 16, 2019, Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia while on an official visit to his hometown Walewale, cut the sod for works to begin on the construction of 2 major projects: a Watermelon Processing factory and a 100-Bed hospital.
The Watermelon Processing Factory was to be facilitated by the Exim Bank, while funding for the hospital was to be provided by the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC).
It is reported that before the sod-cutting ceremony, there was a short celebration in the village attended by chiefs and people of the Mamprugu traditional area where Dr Bawumia promised to complete the project within a period of 12 months.
As part of Joy News checks on government’s project delivery tracker, a visit was paid to the site only to find out that the land has been turned into a maize farm by a native of the land.
In his defence, the maize farmer indicated he was the original landowner of the property.
“They came with chiefs and demanded my land last season. They earmarked about 150 acres and even stopped me from farming on that land last year, but they never returned until this season,” he revealed.
He further added that the maize farm has been the source of livelihood for himself and his 11 children. His decision, therefore, to return to farm on the land was borne out of the lack of activity on the land and the need to feed his family.
With the projects yet to begin, the residents and people of Walewale are disappointed at the current state of the project.
“We are very worried because as you can see, the current Vice President is our brother who is as a ‘Walewalean’, but in another way, it is very painful for him to come and promise the good people of Walewale…and at the end of the day, it won’t happen,” one resident said.