Flooding is as old as man but the worst form of flood disaster is when it is caused by man or the environment. Why must this immeasurable havoc be caused to Southern Volta especially and some parts of the country?
The state of Keta- formerly rated as an ancient buoyant trade hub and the Anloland, in general, have submerged as a result of tidal waves, compounded by the complexities of climate change that remained unresolved.
This siege caused by the VRA Spillage is a clear outcome of negligence and failure at different levels of leadership. It is rather unfortunate to hear some alleging the people should have moved. But blaming the inhabitants for not moving is not the solution and may only cause more psychological havoc –was there a plan to move over a hundred thousand people and to where? How about landed properties, farms, and businesses including aquatic enterprises? Let’s avoid salt to injury. I would agree with a proactive crisis management mechanism that is a bit more realistic, attainable, time-bound, and sustainable.
I consider the spillage a complete failure of intelligence to follow the strategic preparations including business and environmental impact assessment based on the historical antecedents of the dam’s construction and the spillage that occurred over 50 years ago.
What is saddening is that the density of poverty in these communities confronted with this tragedy will be compounded. Livelihood for the affected households is completely lost and hope must be restored as soon as possible. Unfortunately, reports emerging from the Volta River Authority technically suggests that the spillage would continue without specifically charting a strategic roadmap for the affected population. This approach may not only be considered as a gross disregard to the fundamental human rights of the people but may also eventually be considered as a weapon to wipe off or displace the inhabitants of those communities if strict holistic evacuation measures and sustainable livelihood plans are not implemented.
The country at this stage should take a break to do a thorough introspection about the value-chain devastating effect of this complexity: Aquatic lives are distorted and the ills of that would begin to emerge. Care must be taken to prevent life-threatening reptiles including snakes, and crocodiles from attacking the affected communities because of the exposure. Public health complexities cannot be overemphasized. No need to underestimate the effect on the entire ecosystem. Education, agribusiness, hospitality, commerce, socio-cultural and spiritual lives are hampered. Burial places are completely submerged and only God knows when this destitution and trauma shall end. Could this be injustice? Even the Ghana card which is now considered as a ‘lifeline’ for almost every operation in Ghana is lost in water. What would they do when the need arises?
This spillage after the past 50 years left a lot of questions on my mind. In this advanced age of science and technology, where there’s a massive increase in rain patterns with heavy downpours in frequency and intensity globally coupled with the rise of temperatures, population growth, industrialization, etc., why must we be taken by surprise and get to this humanitarian situation?
Apart from the National Disaster Management Organisation, The Volta River Authority, what is the strategic role of the Environmental Protection Agency to give technical support in mitigating this situation? What are we doing as a state? What is preventing us from declaring a state of emergency to help mobilize strategic resources in mitigating this situation in record time? The inhuman situation children and women are going through as a result of this spillage is immeasurable- no portable water, no beds, inadequate tents, no light in some of the places, and the shortage of food is increasing. We have a humanitarian situation at hand and it would not be an exaggeration to declare that axis as a humanitarian corridor with immediate effect and deploy an integrated or collective strategy with all stakeholders involved to contain this horrendous situation.
My visit over the past few days to the affected communities reawakened me about the level of unpreparedness, vulnerability, logistical constraints, and the degree of fragility we face as a nation. Our response mechanism to large-scale disasters is infantry. This situation should re-echo the need for us to change the scope of politics in this country and gravitate towards nationalism and institutional capacity. My observation is not to paint a gloomy climate but to help critically examine our level of investment in various sectors of our society to improve resilience and preparedness in times like this. Something must be done urgently to prevent the escalation. The first point is to find a thin line to depoliticise the situation.
Should we say there were no proactive measures put in place and if yes where are they? No environmental impact assessment before and after with specific recommendations and budgetary allocations to relocate the people? No excuse should be accepted for this leadership oversight or failure.
The capacity of VRA is not in doubt however, after operating for 60 years, one may expect to see more robust green infrastructure systems put in place which would have minimized the impact of this spillage and flooding.
We had public education on water levels, power shedding in the past, etc. what prevented us from raising full public awareness and preparedness if we truly anticipated the degree of devastation? Should we also say we have more reverse power than we distribute including export to sister countries?
I entreat the government to reduce the damage by relocating the people to a safer place as a short-term measure with financial and psychological support to reorganize themselves. Compensation should not be overruled as a medium to long-term measure to alleviate their plights- reconstructing elevated structures, total compensation for properties, permanent relocation, and seed money for business should be greatly considered with a multi-stakeholder approach. To also help us as citizens of this country, more education is needed for key stakeholders in floodplain mapping and flood forecasting to help us identify red zones and with necessary tools and preparedness for evacuation as and when the need arises.
While I urge other well-meaning individuals and organizations to help mitigate this VRA spillage crisis, I would also like to remind us all to be well prepared for the effect of the incoming heavy rains caused by climate change and prevent a culture that would not only promote flooding but also deepen the level of poverty and public health emergencies. Let us decongest our drainages and create and improve more open channels as well as construct detention facilities to reduce the impact.
With the level of water pollution at the moment, water quality and infrastructure is compromised across those affected communities and the Ghana Water Company must take the trouble to restore that situation through quality assurance, alternative source of water, engineering and technical assessment, and more.
Am really touched and thankful by the generosity and love shown by Ghanaians and loved ones across the world but strongly believe the greatest gratitude we can show to the people at the forefront of this situation supplying relief items both cash and kind and providing the necessary leadership is to deepen the work of the inter-ministerial committee both in scope, time, cost, and capacity as well creating a committee of inquiry to investigate this complexity.
By Dr.Donald Senanu Agumenu
The writer is a philanthropist, leadership, and management consultant, an adviser to the International Project Management Commission of the American Academy of Project Management, a Peace Ambassador with the Universal Peace Federation, a leadership Council Member of the International Cities of Peace and Executive Director for Water for Rural Africa.