North Tongu MP Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has called for the sanctioning of authorities and engineers responsible for the spillage of the Akosombo Dam which has displaced thousands.
Speaking in an interview on Joy FM’s Top Story on Tuesday, October 31, he said that the matter should not be swept under the carpet to ensure that it serves as a deterrent.
This, he explained, is because the flooding of nine districts as a result of the spilling, is a disaster on a national scale which has never been experienced in Ghana’s history.
According to him, the necessary institutional reforms must be put in place to prevent future occurrences.
“Lessons must be learned so that moving forward this does not happen … there ought to be sanctions on the decision-makers, engineers who brought us to this point,” he stated.
He added that there are serious questions that the Volta River Authority (VRA) must have answers to over the spillage.
“We must understand exactly what happened. Why are we here? Why is it that since 1963, we have not seen anything like this? There was spillage in 2010 why was that so well managed that we didn’t have the fallouts that we have today?
“Why is it that as Members of Parliament, nobody engaged us? Why is it that we did not put in place measures as a county to take care of those in the Lower Volta Basin? Why so much ineptitude, incompetence, recklessness since this could have led to mass murder,” he added.
His remarks follow the Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin’s orders for a parliamentary probe into the Akosombo Dam spillage.
According to Ablakwa, it is unacceptable that an activity as potentially destructive as dam spillage was done without a well thought through security and safety preparedness plan.
He noted that “Parliament will take the necessary action to inquire into the matter and make recommendations for the protection of properties and lives living along the Volta Lake and other settlements along riverbeds.”
He also expressed his excitement about the way the flooding issue was handled in Parliament upon resumption.
“I am glad that today Parliament accorded this national disaster the seriousness it deserves. I am also glad that the promise that we made our people who are displaced and suffering … I am glad that that objective has been met today,” he said.
Asked how this probe will be different from others done in the past, Mr Ablakwa said this current issue is not a matter that should be politicised, adding that people should not take entrenched positions over it as the lives of the people should be put before any other matter.
According to the legislature, VRA should be made to compensate victims for the disaster caused.
He also called for the Authority to provide settlement for the victims.
