Northern MPs Fail To Attend MCA Launch
.... "We were not invited" - MP

ONLY two out of the 26 Members of Parliament in the Northern Region were present at the official launch of the Millennium Challenge Account in the region by President J.A. Kufuor on Wednesday.

Speaking to journalists after the event at Savelegu in the Savelegu/Nanton district, the Regional Minister, Alhaji Mustapha Ali Idris, expressed his disappointment about the absence of the MPs during the ceremony.

The two MPs who were present were Mary Bogoro and Yakubu Alhassan, representing the Savelegu and Nanton constituencies respectively.

Alhaji Idris said that the MCA project is an all-inclusive investment drive and therefore appealed to all stakeholders, irrespective of their political orientation, to get involved in the pursuit of the country’s development agenda.

However, Haruna Iddrisu, MP for Tamale South, told the Times yesterday that he was not invited to the programme.

"It is wrong for the President to come to our constituencies to carry out such a national exercise, and no one bothered to extend the necessary courtesies to us by way of invitation," he said, adding that "such treatment rather polarises and does not augur well for national unity."

Touching further on the MCA projects in the region, Alhaji Idris said the projects will go a long way to economically empower the people, majority of whom are peasant farmers.

He said about 10,000 farming households will benefit from the programme which will also involve the provision of potable water , roads, micro-credit schemes and mechanised agriculture.