‘Pacify our gods before thermal plant can function’
The chiefs and people of Shama in the Western Region have warned that until officials of the Volta River Authority (VRA) pacify the gods of their land, the generators of the newly built T3 plant will never work.
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According to the Spokesman for the Shama Traditional Council, Nana Kobina Atton III, officials of the VRA were aware of the demands of the chiefs to resettle the gods which had been displaced by the project.
Explaining the situation further to the Daily Graphic, Nana Atton said where the T3 was sited was a river which was the resting place of one of the gods of the land.
But,unfortunately, he said, "The VRA scooped the water and dug the earth with machines.”
"The place is now dry and the gods of the land have been displaced. Therefore, until the VRA respects the land and its culture and traditions and pacifies the gods, the T3 will never deliver the desired results," he added.
He said in all, the VRA took 600 acres of land for the T1, T2 and T3 projects but had always refused to honour financial and traditional obligations to its host community.
Nana Atton recalled that when President John Mahama inaugurated the facility, he highly commended the community for the peaceful co-existence with companies operating there.
"We then told the President about our plight and we were promised by officials of the VRA that they will settle every outstanding bill. But as we speak, nothing has been paid," he said.
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Asked about the details of their demand to pacify the gods, he said, "We have given them a list of all we need. We have also demanded space near the plant where we will build a resting place for the gods."
The community, he said was sounding the warning and if the company had any respect for the community and the land, it should act immediately to restore the strength of the plant.
Responding to the demands of the chiefs, Mr Enoch K. Appiah, the Shama District Chief Executive, said the chiefs had, on several occasions, lodged their complaints with the assembly and the VRA.
He said he had held discussions with officials of the VRA who had expressed their readiness to pacify the gods or meet the demands of the chiefs of the Shama Traditional Area.
When contacted, officials of the VRA at the Aboadze Thermal Plant declined to comment on the matter, except to confirm receipt of the list of demands of the people and to say that they were waiting for directives from Accra.
T3 Plant
The T3 is the latest of the VRA's thermal generating units at Aboadze which contributes 132 megawatts of power to the national grid.
However, a few months after it had been inaugurated this year, the multi-million dollar plant has not been functioning well.
Though the officials attributed the problem purely to technology, the chiefs are of the view that the gods are angry because they have been displaced.