Asenso-Boakye: My Letter to Mahama Was About Prudent Spending, Not Blocking Accra–Kumasi Expressway
Asenso-Boakye says his letter to Mahama focused on completing the 64% finished dualisation project, not opposing the new expressway
- Asenso-Boakye says his letter to Mahama was about preventing waste, not blocking the expressway
- He urged completion of the 64% finished Accra–Kumasi highway dualisation project
- The former minister dismissed claims by Finance Minister Ato Forson that he wanted the project halted
Former Roads Minister and Bantama MP, Francis Asenso-Boakye, has clarified that his letter to President John Dramani Mahama regarding the proposed Accra–Kumasi Expressway was not intended to block the project, but to advocate for prudent prioritisation and efficient use of national resources.
His statement comes after Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson claimed that Asenso-Boakye had recommended halting the expressway, labeling it unnecessary and potentially wasteful.
In a Monday, December 1 interview, Asenso-Boakye dismissed the allegation as misleading. He explained that his letter highlighted technical and economic concerns, urging the government to complete the ongoing Accra–Kumasi highway dualisation, rather than abandoning it in favor of a new expressway.
With limited fiscal space and competing infrastructure demands, he argued that continuity—not duplication—is the responsible approach. The existing dualisation project, he noted, has already reached 64 percent physical completion, and substantial investments have been made since the Kufuor administration.
“As successive governments invested in upgrading the corridor—from major interventions between Circle and Taifa, Nkawkaw and Nsawam bypasses, to the highway between Fumesua and KNUST—abandoning the ongoing project now would be a waste of resources,” he said.
Asenso-Boakye emphasized that his position was not against the new expressway, but aimed at ensuring existing investments are fully utilised to benefit taxpayers.
