President John Agyekum Kufuor said on Thursday that government appointments

have not been selective but have cut across all ethnic groups in the country.

He said this was to make every Ghanaian to be part of the government, adding, "NPP (New Patriotic Party) has competent people from all ethnic groups in finance, education, health, security and all other sectors".

President Kufuor was addressing separate durbars of the chiefs and people of Kukuom and Goaso in the Asunafo District on the first day of his four-day tour of the Brong Ahafo Region.

He said the nation needed the ideas, skills and knowledge of everyone in order to succeed.

President Kufuor announced that the government was to embark on a massive reforestation programme particularly in depleted forest reserves through the creation of land armies.

The armies, he said, would be given the needed inputs such as seedlings, technical know-how and other assistance to sustain the programme.

At Kukuom President Kufuor told the chiefs and people that the government would improve the quality and standard of Kukuom Agricultural Secondary School.

On a request by Osahene Kwaku Aterkyi, Omanhene of Kukuom, for a separate district for Asunafo South, President Kufuor said the necessary negotiations would be made with the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development on the appeal.

He pledged to investigate the alleged 60 per cent reduction on timber royalties from the Forestry Commission to chiefs.

Osahene Aterkyi said chiefs, as agents of change, were committed to help to improve the standard of living of the people.

He urged the government to halt environmental degradation caused by bush fires.

Osahene Aterkyi called for the establishment of a cocoa processing factory in the area to create employment avenues for the youth.

He expressed concern at the poor state of some major roads in the district and appealed to the government to rehabilitate them to link communities in the area to marketing centres and mentioned in particular, the Nobekwaw-Sankore-Boako and Sankore-Abuom roads.

The Omanhene further appealed for the release of 1998-2000 accumulated stool royalties to chiefs in the Brong Ahafo Region to enable them to embark on development projects in their areas.

At Goaso, Nana Kofi Bofah, Acting president of the Mim Traditional Council appealed to the government to create a separate region for the Ahafo area.

He noted that past governments did not have the political will to execute it, but the chiefs of the area "have the conviction that since the NPP government has the goodwill of all Ghanaians, it can do it.