Evans Anakwa
The Greater Accra Regional Hydro Director, Mr. Evans Anakwa has encouraged Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to each form a ‘’Construction Task Force’’ to check unauthorised construction of buildings which take place during weekends.
That, Mr Anakwa contended would prevent developers who might not have building permits from constructing during weekends.
He stressed the point during a sensitisation programme organised by the Ablekuma North Municipal National Disaster Management Organisation(NADMO) for some churches in the municipality including; the Word of Testimony Church International and True Master House Church International.
Mr Anakwa regretted that anytime there was a downpour in Accra for about 30 minutes the whole city gets flooded.
He listed unauthorised construction of building and other structures in waterways, indiscriminate dumping of refuse into drains causing them to get choked and littering on the streets as the major causes of flooding in the city.
Mr Anakwa called for attitudinal change among the citizenry to mitigate the constant flooding of Accra and other parts of the country.
He charged NADMO in the MMDAs to form Disaster Volunteer Groups (DVGs) to assist in disaster management in the communities.
Mr Anakwa urged citizens to report the construction of buildings in waterways to any office of NADMO or call a number he gave out.
He advised motorists not to drive through flood waters, but rather park since their lives could be endangered.
In a presentation done on his behalf, the Municipal Director of NADMO, Mr. Kwaku Duah said luckily Ghana did not experience many natural disasters unlike other countries blaming human behaviour as the major cause of disasters in the country.
Mr Dua was of the view that if the behaviour of people were to change, though disasters might occur, they would not be that high.
He made an appeal to landowners not to give out plots in waterways to developers in order to avert future catastrophes.
Huge sums of money, spent on flood and other disaster victims in the form of relief items he posited, could be channelled into other development projects if people changed their attitudes and advised people residing in flood-prone areas to move to higher grounds during the rainy season.
Ms Afia Adutwumwaah Mmorosa, a NADMO Ambassador advised that mobile phones should not be used in the kitchen where there we5re gas cylinders since it could spark off fire.
