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The people of Ahafo-Ano-South District in the Ashanti Region are calling on President John Dramani Mahama to, as a matter of urgency, nominate a district chief executive (DCE) for the area. Their call comes as a result of the dismissal of the DCE, Mr Gabriel Barimah, popularly known as �Twea DCE�, for public misconduct. It will be recalled that nine people filed for the position of DCE when the position became vacant. They are Nuhu Alhassan Dicko, Thomas Kwakwa, Nana Antwi, Gariba Zibrilla, Nelson Ibrahim Ayamba, Francis Oppong, James Adjei, Julius Baani and Bright Osei. Making the call in separate interviews through the Daily Graphic, the people said Ahafo-Ano-South remained one of the most deprived districts in the region and needed a DCE to ensure the progress of the area. Francisca Marfo, Addai Munumkum, Alhassan Bukari and Baah Dadzie, citizens of the area, told the Daily Graphic that the district was deteriorating by the day, hence the urgent need for the nomination of a new DCE. Absence of DCE creating lawlessness They insisted that the absence of a DCE for the district was creating more room for lawlessness, recalling that recently, some irate youth in the area invaded the residence of Mr Barimah and locked his doors, demanding that the Twea DCE immediately vacate the government bungalow he was occupying on the grounds that he was no more the DCE. �If there were to be a new DCE in place, this lawless acts by the irate youth would not have happened and portray the district as a violent area,� they stated. Assembly disorder, fear, panic and insecurity The DCE is the chairman of the District Security Council (DISEC), and with no DCE in place, the people of Ahafo-Ano-South, as they echoed, were living in fear, panic and insecurity. Though the police were doing their work, the people said they would need a DCE to preside over security matters and adopt the best strategies to protect the people. At a recent sitting of the assembly at the district capital of Mankranso, they said that the Presiding Member (PM) failed to preside over the meeting, causing a state of disorder in the affairs of the assembly. Assembly members Relatedly, assembly members for Ahafo-Ano-South have also issued a statement reiterating the urgent need for the district to have a DCE. According to them, the district had witnessed instability of DCEs, which, to them, impacted negatively on the development of the district. They recalled that when a former DCE of the area, Mr Thomas Kwakwa, was removed from office, Mr Barimah came in and �in no time� was dismissed by the President. They further recalled that after Mr Barimah�s dismissal, the then Ashanti Regional Deputy Minister, Mr Samuel Yaw Adusei, was instructed to act as DCE but was also unfortunately removed as a result of ministerial reshuffle. The level of instability of political heads of the district, they said, was worrying and a great disadvantage to the area which needed development in agriculture, education, health, water and sanitation, among others. They added that during an occasion such as March 6, there was no DCE to represent the President, a situation they observed affected schoolchildren. In addition to that they said during the recent flood disasters where people�s farms and property were destroyed, there was no DCE to, at least, console them and forward their proposals to the President for possible assistance.