Larteh-Akuapem, Sept. 25, GNA- The Eastern Regional Minister, Mr. Yaw Barimah, has commended the chiefs and people of the Akuapem Traditional Area for using dialogue in the settlement of disputes instead of resorting to violence.

He hoped other ethnic areas would emulate such civil practice to help sustain the relative peace the country was enjoying to ensure accelerated development.

Mr. Barimah, made the commendation in an address at a durbar of the chiefs and people of Akuapem Guan at Lartey to mark the celebration of their Odwira festival on Saturday.

He asked the current crop of parents to continue to instill the values of civility, discipline and hard work in their children as their predecessors had bequeathed to them.

He said the introduction of the Capitation Grant and School Feeding programmes were measures the Kufuor administration was implementing as foundation for building the country's human resources from the infant level so that her future development would be assured as exemplified by the South East Asia countries whose per capita income was similar with Ghana at the time of their independence.

The Regional Minister mentioned the major road rehabilitation the government was providing in the area which, he explained, would open the area for rapid socio-economic development, especially the attraction of tourists to the abundant tourist sites.

The Deputy Minister of Defence and MP for Akropong, Mr. William Ofori Boafo, told the people that the time had come for all the communities in the area to bury their differences to promote peace and unity to supplement government's development agenda. He assured them of his active support towards the implementation of their development projects, citing the construction of nurses staff quarters, a by-pass and extension of the town's electricity project. Mr Boafo who donated 36.5 million cedis and 100 bags of cement as his personal contribution towards the early completion of the staff quarters hinted that the Ministry of Energy would soon bring high tension poles to start the power project.

The Akuapem District Chief Executive, Mr. Edward Aboagye, announced that the Larteh Presbyterian Primary School had been included in the School Feeding Programme this academic year to cater for the cluster of primary schools in the town and urged parents in the district to supplement the government's efforts in the education of their children by supplying them with their basic needs.

He assured them that identify cards for those who registered under the District Mutual Health Insurance Scheme would be supplied by November.

Mr. Aboagye said the District Assembly was embarking on the re-evaluation of properties and appealed to landlords to co-operate to ensure the success of the exercise to raise enough revenue for development.

The Lartehene, Osabarima Asiedu Okoo Ababio, III, said the people had embarked on the construction of a nurse's staff quarters for the local clinic and a committee set up to facilitate the provision of the structures for the Larteh campus of the Methodist University College. He announced that a five-year-old Akuapem Guan Education Trust Fund had assisted 17 students with a million-cedi each last year while beneficiaries

for this year were being assessed to pick the brilliant and needy. Osabarima Ababio condemned the upsurge of social vices including homo-sexualism, drug abuse and trafficking and teenage pregnancy and urged parents to instill moral discipline in their children. In response to the appeal for funds towards the completion of the nurses staff quarters which yielded 83.3 million cedis, Mr. Barimah made a personal donation of 100 bags of cement and two million cedis, while he pledged 300 bags of cement on behalf of the Eastern Regional Co-ordination Council. Among the personalities who attended the festival were the DCEs for Atiwa and Kwahu West, Mr Kwasi Agyemang and Nana Kofi Kesse, respectively 25 Sept. 2006 Attention recipients: Item 30 ends our third transmission