By King Amoah
Following the recent devastating floods that have claimed innocent lives and left a trail of destruction across the nation’s capital, a wave of public outcry has emerged.
Ghanaians are now looking back at history, calling on the current administration to audit the tenure of the former Minister of Sanitation, Water and Natural Resources Cecilia Abena Dapaah specifically regarding the utilization of the multi million dollar World Bank grants earmarked for drainage and sanitation infrastructure in the Greater Accra under the previous administration led by Nana Akuffo Addo.
The catastrophic flooding in Accra has reignited debates over whether the funds provided by the international donors were applied effectively or if they were diverted through mismanagement and administrative negligence.
Voices from the Ground: Citizens Demand Answers:
In an exclusive series of interviews conducted across the affected areas in Accra, residents voiced their frustration over the state of the capital’s drainage systems.
Roy Agyeman, a local observer pointed to specific areas such as Graphic Road and Accra Circle the epicenter of the recent flooding and argued that these critical zones were ignored despite being prime targets for the World Bank funded projects.
The areas that needed the most attention were left in a state of decay, Agyeman remarked.
This sentiment was echoed by Madam Mary Marco of Odorkor Official Town who highlighted a failure in enforcement.
The Ministry officials visited the the areafor ‘project work, but they failed to discourage the encroachment on waterways.
They left with little to show for their oversight, she claimed.
At the busy Circle hub, Kofi Krampah went further to describing the drainage expansion project executed under Madam Dapaah’s tenure as “shoddy.”
He noted that despite the investment, the drains overflow at the slightest hint of heavy rainfall that lead to the destruction of personal property and livelihoods.
The Contrast: Success vs. Neglect:
While the general drainage projects are widely viewed as failures, some observers point to one successful initiative during the same period: The Greater Accra and Greater Kumasi Metropolitan Sanitation Project (GKMA SP).
According to credible sources within the Ministry, the GKMA SP, led by. an experienced Sanitation and Environmental Engineer Ing.George Assiedu successfully constructed over 30,000 ultramodern toilet facilities for schools, hospitals, and households.
This serves as a stark contrast to the drainage failures that lead many to ask why the ministerial leadership could not replicate this success in water management.
Samuel Acquah of Nima posed a question that is now resonating across the country: How much exactly was withdrawn from the grant to manage the Greater Accra environment sector?
The former Minister needs to come forward and clear her name.
The Call for Judicial Scrutiny:
The demand for accountability has reached a tipping point with many citizens urging President John Dramani Mahama to leverage the Judicial sector to probe the former Minister.
The public is seeking for transparent inquiry into the grant expenditures.
if found innocent, they argue Abena Dapaah should be exonerated, but if found culpable justice must be served.
This demand is fueled by the cloud of controversy that followed Madam Dapaah’s exit from government during which she was embroiled in a high profile scandal involving the discovery of millions of dollars allegedly stashed in her residence.
With the public still questioning the origin of those funds and the status of money laundering investigations, the pressure for a full audit of the World Bank grants has reached a fever pitch.
A Path Forward?
As Accra continues to grapple with the aftermath of these floods, citizens are calling for a reactivation of the GKMA SP model a one built on technical expertise and transparent management to prevent future disasters.
For many, the message to the leadership is clear: the era of impunity must end, and every cedi of donor funding meant to protect Ghanaian lives must be accounted for.
Stay tuned as the Correspondent King Amoah continue to follow the developments on the Accra flooding crisis and the mounting pressure for government intervention.
