The Hon. Minister of Works and Housing, Samuel Atta Akyea, has urged Ghanaians to undertake voluntary desilting of chocked gutters in their communities to avoid flooding during the rains.
He said the Ghana Meteorological Agency has indicated that there would be heavy downpour this year and therefore, there is the need to put necessary measures in place to avoid any negative consequences.
The Minister was addressing the media during a voluntary desilting of chocked gutters in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region. Hon. Samuel Atta Akyea, disclosed that Dechemso drains would be re-engineered and have underground drains, saying processes are ongoing and when they are done, the project would start.
The exercise, which was organised by the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly, forms part of a collaboration between the Ministries of Works and Housing, Local Government and Rural Development, Sanitation and Water Resources and the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies preparations to prevent flooding during the rains.
Hon. Atta Akyea who also inspected some flood-prone areas in the Metropolis and appealed to Ghanaians to change their negative attitudes and stop dumping filths into the gutters so that the water can have easy passage when it rains.
He said Government is doing its best by allocating huge sums of money for desilting, dredging and drainage works across the country and therefore, Ghanaians should also complement Government’s efforts by ensuring that they do not build on water ways and keep the environment clean.
The Hon. Member of Parliament for Subin, who is also the Deputy Minister of Works and Housing, Eugene Boakye Antwi, commended the Mayor and the good people of Kumasi for their support and a successful exercise.
The Mayor, Hon. Osei Assibey Antwi, appealed to the Minister to ensure that key drains in the Metropolis are re-engineered so that they can contain volumes of water when it rains.