Atlas Hills residents cry out over lack of development

Residents of Atlas Hills at Anyaa in the Ga Central Municipal Assembly have staged a march to protest what they describe as challenges in the area, including bad roads. 

They said that due to  years of neglect by successive governments, the area, including parts of the Anyaa Sowutuom Constituency, had been plagued by poor road networks,  lack of potable water, and illegal land sales and encroachment  among others challenges.

The community, nestled between Gbawe and Anyaa, is home to thousands of residents, yet its roads have deteriorated, with gullies and craters hindering vehicular movement and endangering the safety of residents, who are visibly frustrated over the impact on their peace and well-being.

Protest

The protest, organised by the Atlas Hills Homeowners and Residents Association, was to draw attention to their plight and also serve  as a platform to appeal to the government to intervene and address the critical challenges threatening their safety, livelihoods and dignity.

Dozens of demonstrators who turned up for the protest, included residents, commercial drivers, traders and homeowners, who marched through parts of the affected roads, carrying placards with inscriptions such as "We pay taxes, gives us good roads", "Let's reclaim our right of way", " Stop the greed, Save our street", "Roads are made to serve the community ", "Protect our roads, Hon Minister ", " Our roads cannot be sold to developers" and  "Come to our aid, Mr Allottey", among others.

Addressing the media, the organiser of the association, Rexford Larweh, appealed to the Minister of Roads and Highways, Kwame Agbodza, to ensure that the Atlas Hills community was included in ongoing urban road development programmes, known as the Big Push.

Mr Larweh also called on the District Road Improvement Programme (DRIP) National Coordinator, Nii Lantey Vanderpuye, to deploy the essential DRIP machinery and materials to the community.

He said over the years, the community had repeatedly requested DRIP machines from the Assembly, but were told to bear the cost of fuelling the equipment before deployment.

He said residents were willing to contribute fuel and labour, adding, “All we want is development. Nothing more.”
Road lands

Mr Larweh further appealed to the Minister of Roads and the Minister of Local Government, Decentralisation and Religious Affairs, to address what he described as rampant illegal sale and encroachment on community roads.

He said that for the past six months, they had witnessed an alarming and unlawful sale and construction on parts of their legally demarcated public access roads.

“This egregious illegal encroachment directly obstructs proper drainage, leading to severe flooding and actively threatens our community’s vital access routes,” he added.

He said these illegal constructions were being openly protected by land guards, armed with dangerous weapons and intimidated residents, creating an atmosphere of fear and insecurity. 

Water

Also, Mr Larweh said the community had no pipelines of Ghana Water Ltd, let alone flowing water.

He appealed to the Minister of Works, Housing and Water Resources, Kenneth Gilbert Adjei, to intervene and prioritise the immediate extension of pipe pipelines to the community so that residents could access the fundamental human necessity without further delay.

Roads that kill

Some residents shared their experiences on how the poor infrastructure development was impacting their lives.

A resident, who gave his name as Benjamin, recounted how, during a medical emergency, a critically ill patient had to be carried manually through heavy rain and mud because the deplorable roads prevented an ambulance from reaching her home.

Another resident, Georgina Marfo, recounted how she was forced to walk several miles home after undergoing a Caesarean section.

According to her, although she and her family hired a vehicle from Korle Bu to their destination, the driver refused to continue the trip after seeing the deplorable state of the road.

“I was in pain.

The driver said he couldn’t risk going further, so my husband had to hold the baby while helping me walk home,” she said.

A taxi driver, who gave his name as Awortse, said that the road's poor condition had been a major concern for years, causing damage to vehicles, increasing fares, travel times, and affecting the community's livelihoods.

He explained that transport fares from Anyaa Market to the Hills, previously GH¢3 cedis, had increased to GH¢5 because of the worsening road conditions.