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Transport Minister Kwaku Ofori Asiamah ordered Ghana Airports Company Limited (GACL) to take immediate action to demolish all private and commercial buildings that have encroached on Sunyani airport land.
He further asked the GACL to ensure that all buildings with silver tin roofs that are closer to Sunyani Airport are removed or replaced with roofing materials that meet aviation standards.
Affected victims who do not comply with this directive will also have their roofs removed.
The directive is expected to be implemented before the end of the project by the end of May 2021. This is to ensure the safe arrival and departure of planes that will use the facilities at Sunyani airport.
According to the Minister of Transport, the directives are not only intended to comply with aviation standards, but also to ensure the health safety of people.
“We don’t want an accident to happen before they come and say we’ve seen the construction project and haven’t acted,” he noted.
Hon. Asiamah made the observations during a working visit to Sunyani in the Bono region on Monday, March 29, 2021 to inspect the rehabilitation of the Sunyani Airport project.
The Minister of Transport was accompanied by the Acting Director-in-Chief of the Department of Transport, Mabel Sagoe; Director of Policy and Planning, Ministry of Transport, Irene Messiba; Director General, GACL, Yaw Kwakwa, and some technical staff from the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) and the ministry.
Commenting further, Mr Asiamah said that if action is not taken to restore the encroached land, it will also affect future plans for the airport, therefore, if they want to expand the facility.
Compensation package
Asked whether the invaders will be compensated, the Minister of Transport replied in the negative.
“We will not give any compensation to anyone who knows the land does not belong to them. They’re wrong to come and build on government land – the land we’re going to use to build an airport for the benefit of everyone in this country, especially for the people of Bono, you can’t come and build a house there. individual, hoping that the government will come and compensate you. When the time comes, we will not compensate anyone, ”he stressed.
Project on schedule
Referring to the level of progress of the project, Mr. Asiamah said that “the entrepreneur is on the right track and on time. I was worried that maybe because of the Covid-19 they were going to have the question of the cost of the overrun of the project, but the contractor assured me that they are on time and have completed about 95% of the project. . We hope that by the end of May the project will be finished so that the airlines start flying there. If this airport starts working again ”.
Context
Since 2015, no aircraft have been able to land at Sunyani airport due to runaway damage. Even though the government of the day had secured a loan facility of $ 400 million from the African Development Bank (AfDB) for the construction of Terminal 3 and other airport projects, priority was not given to that of Sunyani airport, consequently abandoning the runaway to deteriorate further.
On June 25, 2019, the government signed a contractual agreement with MM. Resources Access Limited (RAL) for the rehabilitation of Sunyani Airport at an estimated cost of ¢ 48,694,733.69. The project consultant is Engineering Services Provision Company Limited (ESPCo).
The project, with a nine-month timeline, was to have started on October 25, 2019 and end on July 24, 2020.
However, the duration of the contract has been revised, making it seventeen months. The project is expected to be completed by the end of May 2021.
Bono Regional Minister Justina Owusu Banahene, commenting on the project, said that when completed, it will facilitate trade and boost economic activities in the region.
She ensured to team up with the City Manager of Sunyani West to educate those who encroached on airport land to evacuate the land, stressing that “the encroachment should be off the project site.”
GACL Managing Director Yaw Kwakwa, for his part, hoped that the project would be completed on time. He indicated that the runaway which has been extended from 1,280 meters to 1,400 meters with an additional 60 meters at each end, could be extended to 1,900 meters with regard to their future plans.
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