Seeing the unseen at Akuaku
“Water is fundamental for life and health. The human right to water is indispensable for leading a healthy life in human dignity. It is a pre-requisite to the realisation of all other human rights” — The United Nations.
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It was one of my “local tours” that took me to Akuaku, a community with a population of about 400 in the Agona East District of the Central Region.
I went to the community with a friend, Ms Abena Pokua, an Atlanta-based philanthropist, who went there to donate some items to the indigenes of the area.
The brownish mud houses and bamboo-fenced compounds and the mixture of the bleating goats and sheep, and the cackling of fowls painted a panoramic village setting.
The community appeared to be one big family. They all knew each other. Any stranger in the community could even be fished out by a day-old child.
Residents in this community are mainly peasant farmers with a few engaging in gari processing. They use the cassava from their farms to make the gari.
Maame Esi Arkoh with some relatives peeling cassava for gari
It was my first time in the community. I was, however, amazed at some of the things I saw although I wasn’t new to a village setting. I have lived in a village before.
My short stay in Akuaku opened my eyes to many novel issues which I struggled to come to terms with. I couldn’t believe what I saw as I wondered whether it was a dream, trance or reality; it was real.
As the saying goes, “a matter that concerns all must be discussed by all;, the people of Akuaku were not ashamed to share their problems with the Daily Graphic.
Woes
The first problem one will be confronted with at Akuaku is their water.
According to a Slovakian proverb, “Pure water is the world’s first and foremost medicine”. If this saying, however, is anything to go by, then I can state without any shred of doubt that the indigenes of Akuaku lack this essential medicine.
I must admit that I was shocked when I was taken to a cave where the indigenes of Akuaku fetch water. They call the water source, “Koranten”. Due to the dry season, Koranten had dried up and the people had to struggle over the little water that comes from the porous, rocky cave. It was not even ankle deep.
The people of Akuaku rely on the “dirty water” from Koranten for their activities. They drink and cook with this water.
Water from Koranten is used for the processing of gari at Akuako
Water from Koranten is greyish. At close range, one can see many tiny organisms moving in it.
Jean-Michel Cousteau argued that “clean water, the essence of life and a birthright for everyone, must be available to all people now”.
This birthright, however, is not available to the people of Akuaku.
Water
Mr Kweku Mensah, a resident, said the water problem had forced many young people to leave the community.
“Because of our water problem, our young people don’t want to stay here,” he said.
According to Opanyin Kofi Ketiaba, an 80-year-old resident of the community, lack of potable water was one of their greatest problems in the community.
“We have been drinking this water for many years, and we always get sick because it is not safe for drinking,” he said.
He appealed to benevolent individuals, NGOs and the government to intervene and solve their water problem.
Processors
With a heap of peeled and unpeeled cassava in front of her and three others, Maame Esi Arkoh, a gari processor, could not hide her frustration with the water crisis in the community.
According to her, all the gari processors in the community struggled to get water for processing it. t
On the right of Maame Esi Arkoh stood a big metallic basin containing some “dirty water”. I inquired about what she was going to use the water for.
“This is what we use to wash the cassava after peeling them”, she answered.
Maame Esi Arkoh’s answer sent me thinking. I was shocked to hear that. This is because we all indirectly consume some of this “dirty water” through the gari they sell.
Only those who could go to the place at dawn that could get some of the water to fetch, she said.
In an interview, Mr Abraham Ansah, a Pastor of the End Time God in Christ Church at Akuaku expressed unhappiness about their water problems.
“We don’t have water here so we go to Kodwo Owusu, a nearby community, which is about three miles to fetch some”, he said.
He told the Daily Graphic that although the community used to have some taps, they got damaged and had not been repaired for many years.
Pastor Abraham expressed fear that because Koranten contained sediments, it was dangerous to use its water.
Education
It is sad to mention here that Akuaku’s problems are not limited to water. Their education leaves much to be desired.
Pupils in Akuaku graduate at primary three (3). This is because the school in the community ends at only primary three and those who cannot walk long distances to the neighbouring community to continue their education have to declare themselves graduates at primary three.
Pastor Abraham told me, “When the pupils get to class three, they move to Akroma, a neighbouring community to continue schooling there. From here to Akroma is about three miles. The school at Akroma also ends at class six”.
He explained that when the pupils reached class six at Akroma and had to continue to the junior high school, they either go to Bontrase or Kodwo Acquah, about six miles away from Akuaku to continue their education.
Pastor Abraham added that pupils who could not go through the ordeal of walking 12 miles every day (in and out) from Akuaku to Kodwo Acquah had to become premature graduates after primary six.
Electricity
Akuaku has no electric power. An NGO, however, has installed some solar-powered streets lights for them.
It is interesting to note that the people in the community, who have access to mobile phones, charge them once in a week.
“When our wives are going to the markets at Kasoa or Bojiase, we give our phones to them to charge there so that we can use them till the following market day”, Pastor Abraham revealed.
Transportation
Although the road to Akuaku is dusty, it was in good shape. But the sad news was that vehicles come to the community only once a week.
“Vehicles come here only once a week to pick our wives to the market,”
The people from Akuaku travel by motorbikes
“Apart from the market days that we see vehicles here, we rely on commercial motorbike riders for our transportation. If we want to travel, we call the motor riders in nearby communities to come for us,” Pastor Abraham said.
Until the light of a miracle shines on the good people of Akuaku, they will continue to remain on the dark side of development.
Writer’s email: [email protected]
