Chiefs and residents of some four Communities in the Nkwanta South Municipality of the Oti Region are left stranded following the collapse of the only bridge linking the communities. 

Recent heavy rains in the area resulted in the collapse of the bridge on the Keri-Kue Road, restricting the movement of people in and out of the communities namely Keri, Pawa, Gekrong and Kue. 

The affected residents, through their chiefs, called on the government for urgent help for socio-economic activities to resume, saying, though they had always managed the deplorable road in the area, they could not do without the bridge. 

Nana Bayen Asanyo, Chief of Pawa, in a speech read on behalf of the chiefs, disclosed that the road in question, which was initiated in 1972 and had since not seen any repair works, was already, a cause of worry to them, and it was important for urgent action to be taken so vehicles and motorbikes could resume transporting people to the market and other places for their daily activities. 

“We’re stranded. The deplorable nature of our road is affecting our businesses. We’re, therefore, calling on the government to, as a matter of urgency, come and help construct the bridge for us.” 

Some of the youth, who spoke to the Ghana News Agency, said since the collapse of the bridge, it had become difficult to feed their families as most of their farm produces were left to rot on their farms because there was no vehicle to take them to the market for sale. 

Meanwhile, some parents expressed worry about their wards’ education, saying their children could not cross over to go to school and back. 

Mr Jonas Gbedenyo, Assembly member for Keri South Electoral Area, said the situation was negatively impacting on the lives of the electorates and called for urgent action to remedy the situation.