The Volta Regional Chairman of the NPP, Mr Makafui Kofi Woan­ya, addressing journalists in Ho, yesterday, said times have changed and the people of the Volta Region were wide awake.

He was responding to allega­tions made by former President and Presidential Candidate of the NDC, Mr John Dramani Mahama, during his four-day tour of the Volta Region.

Mr Mahama had claimed that the ruling NPP used propaganda to win more votes and abandoned projects started by the NDC.

Mr Woanya stated that the gov­ernment had executed measurable projects backed by data and sta­tistics, illustrating that the essence of politics lies in advancing the welfare of the populace.

He said, the rising number of votes for the NPP in the Volta Region, as noted by Mr Mahama, could not be attributed to pro­paganda or financial incentives, but rather stem from substantial development efforts.

The Regional Chairman refuted Mr Mahama’s allegations that the NPP had forsaken development initiatives initiated by the NDC.

He contended that it was the Mahama-led NDC government that neglected the Volta Region and failed to implement any signifi­cant projects.

Mr Woanya challenged Mr Ma­hama and the NDC to identify a single project initiated by them that was subsequently abandoned.

He also stated that Mr Mahama had no moral right to criticise the eastern corridor road project, noting that the late President, Professor John Evans Atta Mills, began construction of the eastern corridor road from Asikuma Junc­tion before his untimely death.

He claimed that Mr Mahama then redirected the equipment to the Fofosu-Swala road in the then Upper West Region, now the Savannah Region.

He said that Vice President and NPP Presidential Candidate, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, cut the sod for the 56.4-kilometre Jasikan to Dodi-Pepeso stretch of the eastern corridor road.

This project, executed by Sinohydro Corporation Limited at a cost of $ 5,000,000, was subse­quently commissioned by the Vice President.

Mr Woanya also noted that the government completed the Santrokofi-Jasikan portion of the eastern corridor road and is work­ing on the Asikuma-Have stretch and the Sokode-Ho dual carriage road, as well as the Hohoe and Ho town roads.

He explained that the Maha­ma-led NDC government cut the sod for the dual carriage road with­out any design or funding in place.

Mr Woanya said the Free Senior High School (FSHS) programme, the ongoing Agenda 111, and the Planting for Food and Jobs initia­tives were some of the projects that have garnered support for the NPP from the people of the Volta Region.

He also pointed out that the Torgorme irrigation project in the North Tongu District, which was started and completed by the NPP government, is the third-largest irrigation facility after Tolo and Kpong.

This project, he claimed, had created jobs for 1,000 people engaged in the year-round produc­tion of legumes, cereals, and vege­tables in commercial quantities.