BUDGET FOR ELMINA BRIDGE REHABILITATION APPROVED

by Kwamina Bamfo-Agyei & Lina Paulitsch

After two years promise of rehabilitating the Elmina Bridge by former Vice President, now the President H.E. John Mahama, is about to go through the procurement system to select a suitable contractor to execute the works.

In an exclusive interview the Director of Bridges at the Ghana Highway Authority Owusu Sakyere Antwi disclosed that after visiting the site and preparing the estimates, the ministry of Finance has approved of the estimates and has ordered the authority to go through the procurement system in awarding the contract to a suitable contractor.

Mr. Antwi was optimistic that before the end of January 2013 the selected contractor will be at the site to commence the rehabilitation works on the Elmina Bridge. He said a restricted tendering procurement method will be used to select the contractor, since the repair of the bridge requires urgent attention and a specialized nature.

Exactly on August 12th  2010, President John Mahama, the then Vice President, then promised the Chiefs and people of Elmina that the Ghana Highway Authority would be directed to advise the government in terms of cost of rehabilitating the bridge, which was constructed in the early 90s.

Elmina is mainly known for its numerous fishing boats, sandy beaches and, of course, Elmina Castle: innocently beautiful, yet bearing horrible history, it thrones over the busy town. Once being the center of slave trade, it is now considered Elmina's main tourist attraction, visited by many people every day.

The bridge that is leading to the Castle is therefore one of the most frequented ones in the area. Nonetheless, the bridge, which links residents in the area to surrounding communities, is deteriorating each day. The bridge has not seen anything comparable to repair work in many years. Rust is stretching all over the railings and as you are crossing the bridge, you can feel each of your steps making it shake violently. But the actual danger comes from big holes that disfigure the bridge’s road: walking mindlessly, at night for example, one might easily step into them and get severely injured. Currently, both the foot path and access road for vehicles on the bridge are completely rusted, forcing residents to close the foot path to prevent any unforeseen occurrences. The residents are now compelled to use the vehicular path which poses a threat to life since anyone could be knocked down by a car especially during the night.

The fishermen that sit in the shade of the bridge underneath it are well aware of the risk they are taking. But as the bridge has been in this state for many years, without the government investing anything, they are forced to do so and find some rest in the cool shadows.

The Elmina Bridge, also known as the Benya Bridge, in the Central Region has become a deathtrap and residents are now scared to use it.

The rusted bridge, which was built in the 1990s to ensure the free flow of tourists and people from the town to the first Portuguese Castle built in the country, is fast losing its essence.