By Alpha Sesay
The Chairman of the Western Area Rural District Council (WARDC), Kasho Joseph Holland Cole, has clocked three years in office since he was elected in 2018.
During a Press Conference held at the Western Area Rural District Council Conference Hall on the 1st June, 2021, Kasho J. Holland Cole, outlined to Press men the successes, which he said, he has so far scored in positively transforming the Western Rural District within his three years of active service.
He intimated that he got into politics in order to lift his people out of poverty with the philosophy: “One District Where Your Neighbourhood or Your Background Doesn’t Define Your Future”.
That philosophy, he pointed out , triggered him to work assiduously in transforming WARDC within the last three years he has spent in office.
According to Kasho, three years back before assuming office, WARDC was faced with numerous challenges like a weak administration, inadequate staff capacities, poor working environment for staff, poor educational system as most schools were hosted in either makeshift structures in either churches or mosques with poor WASH facilities.
In the area of an effective health care sector, he disclosed it was challenged as there was a poor referral system, poor health infrastructure, an increase in maternal and infant mortality rates, untrained and ill-motivated health personnel and lack of basic medical logistics, the total lack and maintenance of feeder roads and poor fiscal management.
With those monumental problems inherited by him, over the three years, he informed newsmen that he worked relentlessly to ensure the effective transformation of the Council by introducing and implementing a robust fiscal discipline and efficient financial management system which led to the continous annual appraisal by the Auditor General as one of the best Councils for its prudent public financial management and utilization of funds.
Kasho explained that under his watch, he has revamped the health sector and therefore succeeded in decreasing maternal deaths by 45% in 2019 and over 80 % of children were fully immunized in 2018 /19. Albeit these tremendous strides, it was further learnt that he succeeded in rehabilitating the community health facility staff quarter at York Health Centre, procured four motor bikes for the health facility in the district , procured tracer drugs and basic equipment to improve on the availability and utilization of health care services for PHUs , championed the solarisation and upgrade of two community health centres in Grafton and Kissy Town, undertook the rehabilitation of the Newton Isolation Centre for COVID-19 response in the district, constructed a motorized boat for drug distribution , facilitated the solarisation of the facility and water system at the Hastings Community Health Centre and gave support to the day to day running of the Waterloo Government hospital.
Kasho Holland J. Cole further stated how he also ensured the availability of safe drinking water through the construction of the Tombo Water Supply System supported by UNICEF, led the construction of a small water supply systems at Angola town, Hamilton village, Russel Village, Deep Eye Water in partnership with Guma Valley Water Company with funds from the African Development Bank under the Freetown Wash Aquatic Environment Revamping Project.
In the area of infrastructure, with the limited revenue generated, Kasho disclosed that within 3 years he was able to rehabilitate the REC Primary School in Adonkia, undertook the construction of a type one class A market at Yams farm, rehabilitated the Western Area District Library in Waterloo, gave a facelift to the Council office administrative building, undertook the ongoing construction of a six classroom block with office and store in Kossoh town, supported small community-driven interventions in nine communities /wards.
These interventions include the flood mitigation support at Regent, the completion of the Community Health Centre at Tombo, maintenance of the Jui community road, the construction of a Police Post at Yams farm, fencing of the Rokel field, constructing a bridge at Cole town, constructing two public toilets in Kent/York and the procurement of environmental and sanitation materials to support the Local Fishermen Association in Goderich.
Currently , the Council is about to embark on the construction of the Waterloo market to a modernize one with crèche, cold room, stores, and a car park , with funds under the Local Government Development Grant, which procurement process has just been concluded.
The massive improvement and routine maintenance of feeder roads at Russell , Benguema, Goderich roads, the re-channelling of clogged culverts , drainage reshaping, and light grading of some economically viable feeder roads in the district from Newton junction to Rogbery, Rogbery to Gbonkaylay, Samuel town to Pumweh, Macdonal to Kortopemah and Rogbery to Manalo Street, Waterloo.
The reviewed conditions of service for support staff and the increased salaries of all support staff by more than 80% are all achievements scored by Kasho as the conditions of service of staff then were at a very low ebb, support staff were paid below the minimum wage, NASSIT for support staff were not paid and all the aforementioned problems contributed to the dampening of staff morale and the frequent staging of protests by staff during the previous administration.
Presently, all these aforesaid challenges have been addressed by Chairman Kasho Holland J. Cole with prudent leadership accomplished feats that make him stand apart.
