Adentan residents against water connection charges
Residents of Ogbojo and Ashale Botwe, both in the Adentan Municipality, have expressed concern as to why they have to pay for the connection of water to their homes.
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They have, therefore, questioned why the Adentan District Office of the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) should ask them to pay such service charges.
According to them, the water they are receiving now is a promise the President, Mr John Dramani Mahama, made to them in his State of the Nation Address last year, and so they do not see why they should be burdened with such charges when they had lived many years without supply.
The concerns of the residents were raised at an open forum held as part of a ceremony to open the Adentan District Office of the GWCL at Adentan last Wednesday.
According to a resident, Hajia Aminatu, the President, in his address, did not say whether the people had to pay for the water connected to their homes or not and “so why do we have to pay, after over two decades of not having running water through our taps?”
Unfortunate situation
The Accra East Regional Chief Manager of GWCL, Mr Jacob Zeima Yendor, said it was incorrect for residents to think that water supply to their homes would come for free.
He said water supply to Adentan fell under the community-based assisted water project put in place by the company. He said the project was capital-intensive and so the GWCL worked hand in hand with the community to have water provided to them.
According to the Accra East Regional Chief Manager of GWCL, the company currently faced financial difficulties, which was why not all homes in the area had water. He said to be able to lay pipelines and get water to the remaining areas, residents would have to assist by paying their water rates regularly.
Mr Yendor said if more residents got connected to the supply, the price for the commodity and connection would come down.
Adentan District of GWCL
The Accra East Region of the GWCL has had districts carved out of it in its attempt to improve water coverage in the municipality. The Adentan District is the eighth district to be set up.
Following the completion of the Kpone Water Supply Expansion Project and the establishment of a district office, the water supply situation in the Adentan municipality has significantly improved.
Achieve a better livelihood
The Adentan Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Mr Benjamin Angenu, assured the GWCL of the assembly’s support and pledged to collaborate with it to achieve better life for the people of the municipality.
He lauded steps undertaken by the GWCL to replace all old and worn-out pipelines. He said the move was good as it ensured an effective and efficient flow of water. He siad he was hopeful that very soon every home in the municipality would have access to potable water.
He urged residents to be circumspect about the way they used water, endeavour to pay their bills promptly and report any leakages to the water company. He further charged residents to maintain good and proper personal and environmental hygiene to ensure that they were always healthy.
