Former President John Dramani Mahama has asked the government to urgently call for external support to tackle the devastating flood situation in parts of the country, following the spillage of the Akosombo Dam.
The former president in a Facebook post on Wednesday, October 18, also backed calls for the government to declare a state of emergency in areas ravaged by floods.
According to him, Ghana’s crippled economy cannot bear the magnitude of the devastation.
“It is clear that the scope and scale of the flooding of communities along the Volta River is bigger than our crippled economy can bear.”
“I recommend to Government to declare a State of Emergency in the affected areas and request relief assistance from our bilateral and multilateral partners immediately.”
Meanwhile, the call for a declaration of emergency has also been made by the Assemblies of God Church, Ghana.
The General Superintendent of the Church, Reverend Stephen Wengam, made this call at a news conference on Tuesday, October 17.
“Assemblies of God Ghana fully backs calls for the declaration of a state of emergency in the flood-affected areas,” Rev. Wengam said.
Rev. Wengam explained “We are witnessing a flood and disaster on an epic scale and with devastating consequences in the parts of the Volta, Eastern and Greater Accra regions as a result of the spillage of huge volumes of water from the Akosombo and Kpong Dams.”
“It bears recounting that entire communities have been submerged in the floodwaters. Thousands of people including children have been displaced and property worth millions of Ghana cedis lost.
“To make the desperate humanitarian situation worse, public cemeteries, more trees and toilets have also been submerged in the floods, thus polluting sources of drinking water and igniting public health emergency concerns.
The Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) has also backed such a move.
According to the Association, the situation meets the circumstances under which a state of emergency could be declared.
It said when that is done, it will guarantee the supply of essential goods and services to the affected victims.
There is a rallying cry for help to be sent to communities along the Volta Basin that have been affected by the spillage from the Akosombo Dam.
Areas such as Anloga, Sogakope, and Mepe, among others, have been submerged by floodwaters, displacing thousands.
This is a result of the controlled spillage of the Akosombo and Kpong dams by the Volta River Authority (VRA) due to the rising levels of the Volta Lake.
Over the past week, the situation has worsened, with the government and various stakeholders mobilising relief items to ameliorate the plight of the displaced victims.
Already, the Electricity Company of Ghana and the Ghana Water Company Limited both cut services to the affected areas, the former for safety, and the latter for health concerns as the floods have also submerged its pumps and also overrun toilets.