Manfo (Ash), Sept. 6, GNA - Nana Kwame Ntim II, Omanhene of Manfo Traditional Area has expressed worry over the exclusion of Manfo community from the Small Town Water Project to be undertaken in the Ahafo-Ano North District in Ashanti.

He has therefore appealed to the Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing, the Community Water and Sanitation Agency and the District Assembly to investigate the matter and ensure that Manfo was included in the project.

At a press conference held at Manfo on Wednesday, Nana Ntim stated that in 2003, under the auspices of the International Development Agency, three towns in the District, Akwasiase, Mabang and Manfo were earmarked to benefit from the project. He said the three towns paid five percent counterpart funding towards the project in September 2003 with Manfo alone paying 14.5 million cedis.

Nana Ntim said after payment of the money, the consultant conducted feasibility studies on the project and identified places in the town for pipelines and standpipes. However, the people of Manfo later learnt that the project would soon take off at Akwasiase and Mabang excluding Manfo without any reason.

When GNA contacted Nana Eric Agyemang Prempeh, the District Chief Executive, he expressed surprise about the event and petitioned the Ministry of Works and Housing and the consultant to rectify the anomaly. The DCE appealed to the Manfo community to exercise restraint, as the Assembly would do its best to ensure that the project took off in the community.