A senior member of the Convention People’s Party (CPP) has cautioned government officials not to mishandle the newly inaugurated District Road Improvement Programme (DRIP).

Kwame Jantuah fears some of the equipment provided to aid in the construction of the selected roads will not be properly used to complete the project.

The CEO at African Energy Consortium Limited told Joy Prime’s Prime Morning Show that, regarding the inclusion of MPs as members of DRIP’s committee, he is not bothered about that because they can best guide in identifying the poor roads in the districts.

“So far as I’m concerned, parliament should be part and parcel of it because parliamentarians are the constituencies. They can monitor it, and when the Auditor-General brings his report because they’ve been on the ground, they’ll be able to see whether what he’s saying is right or wrong.

"They’ll be able to tell us whether the equipment is being used correctly for the work it’s supposed to be used for. We hope nobody is going to use it for galamsey because we haven’t been able to solve the galamsey problem, and some of this equipment is going to galamsey areas.”

As a result, he demands that President Akufo-Addo and the committee in charge should account for the amount to be spent on the project to help Ghanaians be informed on where the country has broken even with the equipment purchase.

The private legal practitioner lauded government for implementing such a policy.

However, he is concerned about the supervision of the quality of work the machines will do, taking into consideration the cost incurred in buying them.

Additionally, he pointed out that one thing that is lacking in the initiative is road markings, despite their being crucial to road construction and safety.

“If the safety devices are not on the road, the road is still dangerous, especially at night. To be able to guide you when there are no streetlights. At least when there are markings on the road, your headlight can ruminate the road for you so you know where you’re going.”

To execute the project efficiently and ensure effective management, Mr Jantuah urged the government to ensure intensive supervision of the contractors.

Meanwhile, some five thousand Ghanaian construction workers are expected to gain direct jobs from the government's accelerated road construction DRIP project.

The initiative, which is expected to begin in earnest, is mainly funded by the District Assembly Common Fund and is meant to patch up and smooth deplorable roads across the country.