Perennial Floods: All structures on waterways will ‘go down’ – NADMO boss

The Director-General of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), Maj Joseph Bikanyi Kuyon (rtd), has reiterated the planned demolition of properties sitting on waterways in urban settlements.
He indicated that for the greater good of urban cities settlers, all structures that are obstructing the free flow of water bodies must be demolished to curb perennial flooding.
He made this statement during an interview on Citi FM on April 7, 2025.
He, however, gave assurance that the planned demolition exercise will be guided by expert advice.
“It’s obvious that to solve a problem, there must be some discomfort to ensure that the rest of us are safe. It is obvious that some structures will have to be pulled down, and people filling waterlogged areas to erect structures will be stopped to enable us dredge the areas to restore them to their original state,” he stated.
He lamented that the ecosystem is disturbed and if drastic measures are not taken immediately, it will cause floods that could engulf certain parts of cities across the country.
“The ecosystem is disturbed. If we do not restore the vegetation, it means that the people in this system will suffer; and that include me and you. So, there will be dredging and demolitions. We have to do it if we want to curb the flooding that we envisage with the imminent rainfalls,” he said.
Responding to the scope of the demolition, he said; “First of all, the focus of the demolition is not only in Accra, but all urban settlements. But specifically, we see a serious problem in Accra that is why the discussion appears to be centered only on Accra.”
He added that if it’s possible to spare some structures in densely populated areas, they would consider it based on the advice of experts on the demolition team.
“We don’t do demolition from the layman’s perspective. We have engineers, technocrats and experts who are part of this team. They will advice on where structures must be pulled down. Where there is a possibility to redirect the course of the water; why not, we are human beings and don’t aim to unnecessarily cause discomfort to anybody. Unfortunately, where it is absolutely impossible to redirect watercourse, marked structures must go down, and we will ensure that the demolition is done,” he said.