Dr Clement Apaak
All Ghanaians must, as a matter for urgency, heed the call made by President Akufo-Addo to protect the environment, Dr Clement Apaak, Member of Parliament for Builsa South, has said.
According to him, the destruction of the environment has several health implications, hence the need to ensure good management of the environment.
President Akufo-Addo, delivering his speech to mark Ghana’s 60th independence anniversary noted: “It is turning out to be a constant refrain, but, on a day like this, we cannot ignore the state of our environment.
We are endangering the very survival of the beautiful and blessed land that our forebears bequeathed to us. The dense forests, that were home to varied trees, plants and fauna, have largely disappeared.
Today, we import timber for our use, and the description of our land as a tropical forest no longer fits the reality.
Our rivers and lakes are disappearing, and those that still exist are all polluted.
“It bears repeating that we do not own the land, but hold it in trust for generations yet unborn. We have a right to exploit the bounties of the earth and extract the minerals and even redirect the path of the rivers, but we do not have the right to denude the land of the plants and fauna nor poison the rivers and lakes.
“There is nothing we can do better to pay homage to those who fought to free us from bondage than to dedicate this 60th independence anniversary to protecting our environment and regenerating the lands and water bodies.”
Speaking on TV3’s New Day on Saturday 11 March, Dr Apaak, who is also a member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) communications team, said: “Let me make this important point that this is a call that we should all take very seriously because of the health implications.”
