Fulfil promises to Gbawe, Mallam - Residents urge govt
Residents of the Guinness Depot lane, Gbawe, and Mallam are calling on local authorities and the government to sit up and fulfil several broken pledges of preventing perennial floods in the two areas.
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The Gbale tributary extends to the Guinness Depot Lane and has been blocked at the point of its entry into the sea at the Mallam Intersection by a filling station.
A resident who agreed to speak on record on the matter, ex- WO I Abraham Agyen Tettey, said they had tried to get their assembly member to speak to the managers of the Total Filling Station to relocate to save lives and property but to no avail.
"Here, when we talk, because our coat tear tear, they don't mind us," he said.
Obstruction to tributary
For ex-WO I Tettey, the main problem was the filling station that had blocked the natural course of the water, resulting in floods.
He recalled that the tributary initially flowed on a straight path until people built on its course, forcing local authorities to divert its path during hydraulic works to properly channel the tributary.
"We need the authorities to do something. When it rains, it is difficult," he added.
Another resident, Mr Eric Kabutey Doku, said when it rains, residents living on one end of the road were virtually cut off from the people living on the other side as the water overflowed its banks.
He said on a number of occasions, he had to rescue stranded schoolchildren as they could not reach their homes because of the flooding of the area.
For Osofo Maame, Patrick Mensah and other residents, they had taken to self-help projects to protect their homes and property.
They had reinforced their homes by building concrete structures round the them.
Encroachment
The Gbale tributary itself has been heavily encroached on by individuals, who have built their homes very close to its course.
At the time of Daily Graphic’s visit, a private developer was putting finishing touches to a washing bay for vehicles, which was built in such a way that the waste water and dirt from the bay would directly be channelled into the tributary.
Other residents, who did not want to be named, said if the developer was not stopped, it would damage the tributary's eco-system and kill the fish in it, which is a source of livelihood for some schoolchildren who often fished and sold their catch to help them in school.
Email: caroline.boateng@graphic.com.gh