Essam (E/R), April 6, GNA - The people of Essam in the Birim South District of the Eastern Region, on Saturday raised 1,500 Ghana cedis in aid of their electrification project.

Essam, a farming community near Akim Oda in the Birim Central Municipality, had already purchased eight out of the 56 low-tension poles required for the project, at a cost of 800 Ghana cedis. Mr. Collins Quaye, chairman of the project committee said: "even though this is a poor community, we have levied ourselves in addition to previous harvests, since not even the Municipality is assisting us in our quest for the installation of lights". The youth were contributing 10 Ghana New Cedis each, while the elders of the town were paying 50 Ghana New Cedis each to purchase the rest of the poles.

The committee had also mandated every child who had attained 15 years of age and married, to pay 10 Ghana New Cedis.

Speaking at a meeting to discuss the way forward towards their electrification project, Nana Yaw Obiri II, Odikro of Essam and Mr. Reginald Sackey, assembly member for the area appealed to the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) and philanthropists who had the welfare of the town at heart to assist them to purchase the remaining poles, since the amount raised was inadequate.

Mr. Sackey said the electrification of the town was a priority project to the people of Essam, who had vowed not to drift to the urban centres in search of non-existing jobs, but to remain to carry out their farming activities in order to help feed the nation. The assembly member said the town's clinic that catered for the surrounding villages needed electricity to provide cold storage facility for its vaccines and other drugs, adding that the local school's laboratory and workshop could also benefit from the power supply.