Accra Floods: Adom Otchere names people who misled President Mahama

Broadcast journalist and host of Good Evening Ghana on Metro TV, Paul Adom-Otchere, has accused civil society actors, including investigative journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni, of misleading President John Dramani Mahama into cancelling the contract between the Youth Employment Agency (YEA) and waste management firm Zoomlion Ghana Limited.

According to him, the decision has worsened sanitation challenges in the country in the wake of the recent floods in Accra.

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“15,000 street sweepers have been withdrawn because the Zoomlion contract has been terminated by YEA because Manasseh Azure said that they should terminate the contract. So, the president got very bad advice from his civil society people. Tonight, those civil society actors that advise the president wrongly have blood on their hands," he stated on his show on June 30, 2026.

The veteran journalist further argued that the sanitation system in Ghana had been built over years through collaboration between government, district assemblies, and development partners, and warned against abrupt changes to established arrangements:

“What has happened is that over the last 10 years there has been progress in securing a certain way in which environmental services provision will be delivered to local assemblies in a manner that supports modernity, in a manner that supports job creation, and in a manner that supports a better and higher standard of living for Ghanaians.

"Over the last 10 years this conversation has been going on with stakeholders in the middle of it, including international organisations and development partners. The conversations came to a conclusion during the Akufo-Addo era,” Adom Otchere noted.

In June 2025, the Presidency announced that the contract between the YEA and Zoomlion Ghana Limited has expired and will not be renewed.

In a letter dated June 11, 2025, and signed by the Secretary to the President, Dr Callistus Mahama, the Jubilee House acknowledged the concerns raised in a petition by Mannasseh Azure and outlined several government decisions stemming from the review.

Cabinet subsequently directed that future sanitation contracts be subjected to competitive procurement processes.

“This could reduce costs through competitive pricing and stimulate innovation, as companies compete on service quality to secure contracts,” it noted.

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