ATTA AKYEA URGES GHANAIANS TO BE ENVIRONMENTALLY RESPONSIBLE TO PREVENT FLOODING
The Hon. Minister of Works and Housing, Samuel Atta Akyea, has urged Ghanaians to be environmentally responsible in order to help reduce filth and curb the recurrent flooding during the rainy seasons.
Hon. Atta-Akyea expressed concern about the attitude of some Ghanaians who dispose of rubbish in drains, stating that until Ghanaians change their attitude, Accra and major parts of the country would continue to face flooding situations.
The Hon. Minister made this revelation during a tour of some flood-prone areas in Accra to assess the condition of the drains and prepare ahead of the 2020 rains.
He indicated that no amount of investment aimed at ending the perennial flooding in Accra will be successful if the disposal of rubbish into drains continues.
According to him, the government has invested huge sums of money into solving drainage problems but if Ghanaians exhibit positive attitudinal change towards waste management, Government could use that money to invest in other projects for national development.
He said flood prevention is a collective responsibility and therefore urged the Local Government and the District Assemblies to do proper checks before issuing building permits. Proper checks he said, would go a long way to prevent people from building on water ways which results in flooding when it rains.
He stated that severe punishment should be meted out to people who dump waste into gutters and who build on water-ways to serve as a deterrent to others.
He appealed to all citizens to be more vigilant as there would be more rainfall this year above normal as predicted by the Ghana Meteorological Agency.
Hon. Atta Akyea urged the media to help fight waste littering by educating the good people of Ghana on the risk of polluting the environment and its consequences on future generations.
The Hon. Minister was accompanied by Hon. Eugene Boakye Antwi (Deputy Minister), Mr. Solomon Asoalla (Chief Director) and some other officials from the Ministry of Works and Housing, Hydrological Services Department and the Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources.