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• HJK 10 years ago

  Ghana's day of infamy was recorded on Wednesday, June 3rd when flooding and fire claimed more than two hundred(200) Ghanaian lives. As a nation, we all have to accept blame for contributing to the untimely deaths of our broth ...
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  Ghana's day of infamy was recorded on Wednesday, June 3rd when flooding and fire claimed more than two hundred(200) Ghanaian lives. As a nation, we all have to accept blame for contributing to the untimely deaths of our brothers, sisters, fathers and uncles but the government has to accept greater proportion of this blame and even Tractor Ayariga,
  The Minister For Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation who usually supports and defends government dumb policies accepted this fact when he said this; " that political leadership has to bear blame arising from the unfortunate floods that claimed lives and destroyed properties days ago."
  
  As usual with our political leaders who are known to close the barn after the horses have bolted away, the government released sixty million(GHc60m) Ghana "choppable" cedis we 'didn't have ' on Wednesday June the 3rd the following day to take care of hundreds of people who got hurt and the family of dead Ghanaians. The government did not stop there, an earth movable bulldozer or bulldozers was/were sent to the Odaw river to start distilling work that has been neglected for years for lack of funds. Why now and where did we get the funds to immediately start doing something that if we have done earlier might have prevented the unfortunate deaths of the more than the two hundred people we lost on that day or at least would have reduced the number of deaths?
  
  My fear is that, the sixty million Ghana new cedis earmarked to take care of the victims, most of the money will be used to pacify party foot soldiers and some will end up in the pockets of the Ndc Politicians.
  
  So far the measures government has adopted to address the perennial flooding in Accra seems to be the usual putting bandages on a sore leg that needs amputation. The three days of mourning is just the government crying crocodile tears. Rather we need three months of government intensive structure demolitions. All buildings that impedes the free flow of water into the sea and rivers needs to be pulled down but it should be done irrespective of the neighbouhood. So far the pulling down of buildings have started at Bukom and other poor neighborhoods whilst places like Tesano, Dzorwulu and other rich places where people paid bribes to put up mansions on waterways have been spared.
  
  The government should be blamed in my estimation for taking loans and grants to address this problem and diverting the funds for other political projects.
  
  In 1996, the government under Rawlings took a world Bank loan of $71,000,000 to address the flooding problems in Accra but Mr. Jerry "Accountability" Rawlings who was never an Engineer, a City Planner, a Hydrologist, Environmental Scientist, or Construction Engineer, by profession at least has not accounted for how this money was used. The same Rawlings administration in 1997 got a grant from Kuwait, 28 million dollars and another 35 million grant from South Korea to address the flooding problems in Accra and we still don't know what these grants were used for.
  
  In 2012, this Ndc administration secured a $600 million loan facility but failed to construct drainage facilities for which this loan was meanst for. The loan which was duly approved by parliament was secured from the Export Bank in USA and the Standard Chartered Bank. Some of the flood prone areas which were earmarked to benefit from the facility included, Osu Clottey, Kyemu, Odaw, Labadi and Teshie areas.
  
  
  
  
  With all these loans and grants and the government failing its responsibility to protect the citizens of Ghana, President Mahama passed the buck and blamed Ghanaians for causing this problem when he visited the sight where more than hundred Ghanaians lost their lives.
  
  "President Mahama who visited the areas in the early morning of Thursday, June 4, 2015, was appalled by the situation and blamed human activity as a contributory factor to the flooding from the heavy downpour of Wednesday.He said government officials were working throughout the night to offer support to victims and they will take measures to make sure it never happens again."
  
  President PROMISE AND FAIL as usual went on his promising spree and assured Ghanaians that he will do everything to make sure that this never happens again, a promise that we have heard time and time again without it being fulfilled.
  
  Now some Politicians are singing like canaries and confessing their culpability in this catastrophic incidence like Parishioners of Catholic seeking absolution from a Priest by confessing their sins in order to flummox Ghanaians and keep their positions without paying any price.
  
  "The disdain shown the leadership of parliament by victims of the latest rain and fire disasters at the Kwame Nkrumah circle in Accra is an indication that the House has failed to keep in touch with the people, Majority leader Alban Bagbin has said."
  
  " Accra Floods: Buck stops with leadership - Mahama Ayariga
  The Minister For Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation Mahama Ayariga have conceded that political leadership has to bear blame arising from the unfortunate floods that claimed lives and destroyed properties days ago."
  
  
  "The mayor of Accra, Ghana’s capital city has admitted that he has failed the people in his administration of the city.
  
  The man who recently won the prestigious Jose Eduardo dos Santos African Best Mayor award at the second African urban infrastructure investment forum, has come under heavy criticism for the poor planning of the capital, particularly the poor sanitary conditions which has been credited with the destruction caused by Wednesday's floods that claimed over 100 lives."
  
  Despite these admissions, President Mahama who should have admitted his failure in this regard and allowed the blame to stop on his desk blamed Ghanaians but not his government. Yes, Ghanaians should share some of the blame for throwing things into the open gutters but if government would have covered these gutters which we paid government to do, this would not have been a problem.
  
  What about buildings put on water ways? Some of these buildings were put up after owners secured permits to build these houses and government should blame corrupt officials and the ineptitude of government officials to prevent these people from putting up structures where none should be allowed.
  
  Most Ghanaians support the government to go ahead and demolish these buildings to prevent future tragedies but the government should do the right by compensating those who got permits to build before pulling their buildings down, that will be justice.
  
  Many prominent citizens of Ghana have cautioned us all not to make this tragedy political but it is political and if this would have happened in any NPP administration, Ndc would have made it political as they did with Ya Na's tragedy and the Accra Sports stadium tragedy by blaming President Kufuor and Npp government so this is political than those two incidents and we will respectfully disagree and make it political.
  
  Justice Sarpong
  
  (CARDINAL of TRUTH)

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