The Member of Parliament for South Dayi, Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor, says there is an increase in responsibility when a sitting Member of Parliament (MP) is re-elected.

Speaking on the JoyNews' AM Show on Tuesday, December 17, Mr. Dafeamekpor revealed that the resources obtained from the MP’s common fund are too meager to undertake major projects in their respective constituencies.

However, he emphasised the basic responsibility of an MP.

“The MP’s share of the common fund is not enough for you to undertake heavy projects, i.e., construction of classroom blocks, clinics, health centers, construction of roads, and all that. But because we are the people who, or we are public officers who go to the people for their mandate, as it were, to canvas for votes, the needs and the interests of the people are dumped on you to take care of,” he said.

Mr. Dafeamekpor also expressed frustration about the difficulty of lobbying for projects in constituencies as an opposition MP.

“So, when you are in opposition, it is very difficult to get things done from the center. You want to lobby for even the rehabilitation of your road, and it takes forever. It’s especially hard when you want the road to be tarred as an MP from an opposition party. Tarring of the roads must go through the budget, and in preparing the budgets, you will see that the government will prioritize areas where they think they have sitting MPs,” he asserted.

He further outlined some projects to be undertaken in his constituency, including some feeder roads, totaling about 120 km, and the extension of water to the Tomor-Kpali area, which, according to him, is ongoing and is set to be completed next year.

“As an MP who now belongs to a government in power, my burdens have become heavier, and every day, the expectations of the people will be that you need to make these expectations a reality,” he said.

Mr. Dafeamekpor also expressed his excitement about his re-election by the constituency to represent them in Parliament. He recounted some social interventions he made, which earned him the love of his constituency and resulted in his re-election.

“You remember the difficulties we had last year. Apart from the Volta Lake bursting at its seams, which led to the floodgates being opened, you know, we upstream suffered more. It was our side that got flooded before VRA had to spill,” he said.

He added, “So if you are an MP, when things like this happen, you need to build empathy with the people to make interventions, so people don’t forget those who help them in times of crisis.”