Tidal wave victims receive fresh hope - President assures of permanent solution soon

President John Dramani Mahama has pledged the government’s determination to find a permanent solution to the ruthless and persistent tidal waves invasion of the coastal communities of Agavedzi, Sallakope and Amutinu in the Ketu South Municipality in the Volta Region.

Price: GH¢8.00 Ravages caused by the recent tidal wave at Agavedzi “We already have a comprehensive report on the situation; the feasibility studies and  the design for the Blekusu Phase 2 (sea defence) project are ready, and we just have to allocate the funding for the project,” he said.
 
The President Mahama said this at a mini-durbar of the chiefs and the people of the affected communities at Agavedzi last Thursday after touring the areas destroyed by tidal waves to see at firsthand the damage caused by the sea. 

The President visited the area moments after presiding over affairs at Ghana’s 68th Independence Day celebration at the Jubilee House in Accra.
 
He told the people that he would direct the Minister of Finance to include the sea defence project’s required expenditure in the Budget Statement scheduled to be presented to
 Parliament on Tuesday.
 

Damage so far
 

So far, 51 households have been affected by the tidal waves this year, displacing 300 people and washing away 800 metres of coastal land. 

“The government has not forgotten you; we will do everything possible to ameliorate the plight you are going through,” the President affirmed.
 
He blamed the severity of the problem on the failure of the previous government to continue the Blekusu Phase 2 project which covered Agavedzi, Sallakope, Amutinu and Adina, saying the project would be revived soon. 

Among President Mahama’s large entourage were ministers of state, Members of Parliament, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA), Professor Nana Ama Brown Klutse, the Regional Minister, James Gunu, and officials of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO).

Resettlement site
 

President Mahama, however, expressed misgivings over the quality of the Ghana Gas resettlement project in the area, and said it was shoddy with structures not fit for purpose in a flood prone zone. 

He said when Blekusu Phase 2 eventually took off, efforts would be made to resettle the displaced people at a suitable ground.
 
The durbar was attended by the chiefs, queens and people from the entire Some Traditional Area, beyond the affected communities.
 
The Paramount Chief of Some, Togbiga Makorsor Adama III, said the President’s visit signified hope for the people and bore testimony to his personal concern for the wellbeing of the people.
 
“You started the sea defence project in 2015; if the New Patriotic Party (NPP) had continued it, this would not have happened,” he added.
 
For now, Togbiga Adama said, the people’s expectations were on the Mahama-led government for respite.
 
The regional minister said the failure of the previous government to continue the sea defence project brought agony to the people for eight years.
 
The assembly member for Sallakope, Sylvester Kuma, said without the sea defence, the livelihood of the people would remain at risk all the time.
 
Later, President Mahama presented a large consignment of assorted relief items to the people.
 
The consignment included 250 bags of rice donated by the Minister of Roads and Highways and MP for Adaklu, Kwame Governs Agbodza; GH¢100,000 donated by Engineers and
 Planners; the same amount donated by the Volta Region National Democratic Congress (NDC) caucus in Parliament and 500 bags of rice, 200 cartons of cooking oil, 100 cartons of soap, 30 cartons of mosquito coils and bales of used clothes from NADMO.

These funds are intended to support the affected families as they rebuild their lives.  

Displaced people

Many of the displaced people who spoke to the Daily Graphic said the solution to the tidal waves problem was the sea defence wall.

“What we need now is the sea defence wall to protect lives and property and bring back our livelihoods,” a resident, Yawo Moayekor, said.

The 30-year-old mother of three who is a trader said the tidal waves had deprived her of  business, and that the relief items would only help for a few days.

Another woman, Josephine Domevenu, said with no roof over her head and nowhere to sleep, she could not work to feed her children.

 She said the President’s visit had renewed her hopes for a  permanent solution to the problem.