There was wailing and gnashing of teeth at the Sakumono Ramsar site in the Tema West Municipality of the Greater Accra Region, as more than 100 buildings and fence walls erected on the wetland were crushed down in a demolition exercise embarked on by the authorities on Tuesday.
Owners of some of the demolished buildings who could not stand the sight of years of sweat and toil come down in a flash of light could be seen wailing and crying while others even collapsed out of pain.
In a rare feat of bravado, some of the affected landlords confronted the taskforce conducting the exercise in anguish, spiting fire on the authority who sanctioned the exercise.
It took the timely intervention of heavy security present to prevent what could have become a bloodbath as some of the affected owners fiercely charged on members of the taskforce.
The exercise, which was carried out by the Greater Accra Regional Coordinating Council (GARCC) in collaboration with the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), the Forestry Commission and the various Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) in the region formed part of elaborate measures outlined by authorities to mitigate flooding in the Greater Accra Region during the rainy season.
It was also to prevent further construction and occupation of high-risk areas, while reducing the vulnerability of residents to flooding and potential hazards.
The Greater Accra Regional Minister, Mrs Linda Obenewaa Akweley Ocloo, under whose watch the exercise was executed explained that the exercise was carried out as a proactive measure to mitigate the impact of flooding and ensure public safety.
Despite the high level of resistance, the Minister noted that the GRCC would not back down on the exercise but would continue to ensure that all illegal structures were cleared from the area.
In a twist of event, some of the developers in the area accused the site manager of the Forestry Commission of being complicit in the illegal activities going on in the area.
They alleged that the manager, Mr Thomas Acquah, whose responsibility included; taking steps to prevent people from encroaching the wetland which was under the trust of the Forestry Commission often collected monies from developers and allowed them to go ahead with construction illegally.
Mr Acquah who was present during the exercise instantly denied the allegations vehemently, claiming that accusations were filed against him because he had become a torn in the flesh of those illegal developers.
“I have not taken any money, not even a single dime from anyone. My role as a public servant is to enforce the law, not to facilitate illegal activities,” he emphasised.
He recounted a confrontation with one individual, who allegedly threatened and insulted him when he and his task force attempted to demolish her structures on the waterway.
Mr Acquah claimed that the woman chased his team with a vehicle and suspected to be armed men on one of such occasion, leading them to flee the site.
He maintained that he had warned the individuals about the illegality of their actions and had not taken any money from anyone as alleged.
Meanwhile, Mrs Ocloo, said a committee would be set up to investigate the allegations against the site manager and the findings made public.
The investigation, she said was to get to the root of the allegations and determine whether the site manager had indeed collected monies from those individuals.
She expressed concern over the situation, questioning why developers were allowed to reach this level without intervention from relevant authorities.
“We are all Ghanaians but no one is above the law and that the Ramsar site designation of the waterway will be respected and we will take action against anyone found to be in violation of the law,” she said.
BY CECILIA YADA LAGBA
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