By Ragan M. Conteh
The chairman of the Western Area Rural District Council (WARDC), Casho Allan Cole has in a press conference held on Tuesday February 22, 2022 at the Council Conference Room highlighted his four years of successes and challenges.
According to Chairman Cole, when he took over the mantle of leadership of the Council in 2018 he met in only Le21 million in its bank account.
He said, apart from meeting such a paltry sum in Council’s account, he also inherited a Council that was having few staff that were only receiving Le250,000 as salary.
Chairman Casho Cole informed that aside from staff receiving such an inadequate amount as salary, there were no facilities like medical for staff of the Council.
‘I inherited a Council that doesn’t have a property rate cadastral, and that a number of entities were just collecting property rates and other dues with no proper accountability,’ he said.
He said it was against that backdrop he decided to stamp his feet and threw a challenge to his Councillors and people that he was going to transform the WARDC into an enviable Council.
He said after discovering that there were no controls in terms of collection of property rates and other Council dues, he decided to contract institutions to do the property rate collection, though the contractors breached the contract agreement.
He informed that, when he took over governance, the previous administration was collecting Le12 million as market dues per year, but he changed that narrative ‘from Le12 million per year to Le60 million per month’ as market dues.
Chairman Cole disclosed that WARDC is now paying its increased number of staff from the pittance of Le250,000 per month they used to receive to Le900,000 per month ‘with medical and fully paid up NASSIT contributions’.
He said WARDC has now procured 10 new buses through a bank loan, adding that apart from buying the 10 buses, they have also been able to buy another bus from the proceeds generated from the government school bus, which to them is a novelty, as no other Council had ever done such.
Chairman Casho Cole informed that they have already cleared the place for the construction of an ultramodern market which will cost Le2.3 billion for the people of WARDC. The contractor has been given an advance payment of over Le600 million, he revealed.
He said in order to control the inflow and outflow of income generated from the Council, they have instituted a banking system in which all Council revenue are deposited, ‘and money can only be withdrawn from that account upon the approval of Councillors’.
Chairman Cole noted that, through the revenue generated, they have been able to construct an ultramodern school, which will be officially opened on today, Friday February 25, 2022.
WARDC can now boast of a befitting conference room, running water throughout the entire building, constant electricity, structured administration, among many other achievements, within the four years of Chairman Cole assuming the reins of power.