Former Roads and Highways Minister, Francis Asenso-Boakye, has clarified that his correspondence to President John Dramani Mahama regarding the proposed Accra–Kumasi Expressway was intended to advocate for prudent spending rather than to oppose the project.
His response follows accusations by the Minister for Finance, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, who claimed that Asenso-Boakye had advised President Mahama to cancel the expressway on the grounds that it was unnecessary and financially wasteful.
Speaking to the media on Monday, December 1, Asenso-Boakye dismissed the allegation, describing Dr Forson’s interpretation as inaccurate and unfair.
The Bantama MP explained that his letter merely highlighted technical, fiscal, and practical concerns, emphasising the need to complete the ongoing Accra–Kumasi dualisation project before embarking on an entirely new expressway.
He argued that, given Ghana’s limited fiscal space and competing infrastructure demands, it was essential to avoid duplication and protect the substantial investments already made.
According to the lawmaker, the dualisation project had reached 64 per cent physical completion, making it financially unwise to abandon it. He noted that the development of the Accra–Kumasi corridor had spanned successive administrations, beginning with President Kufuor’s tenure.
“My second point was that they were going to abandon the existing highway,” he said. “Since President Kufuor’s era, there has been significant work to provide a modern highway from Accra to Kumasi. Under President Kufuor, we had major interventions — from Circle to Taifa, the by-passes at Nkawkaw and Nsawam, the Nkawkaw–Apedwa highway, and the Fumesua–KNUST section in Kumasi.
“It was then for President Mills and President Mahama to continue, but that did not happen. President Akufo-Addo revived the project, and so I urged the government not to abandon it, with the project already 64 per cent physically complete.”