Supporters of the MP, led by the women’s wing, defied a heavy downpour to accompany him to the Electoral Commission’s office at Battor in the Volta Region.

In his address to the large crowd of constituents who braved the rain to attend the event, Ablakwa solicited their support to achieve a victory margin of 94% in the upcoming election, further solidifying the NDC’s control over the constituency.

He also appealed to his constituents to allow him to continue the significant acts of service he has achieved over the past four years, assuring them that he would not take their support for granted and would work even harder on their behalf.

Ablakwa announced plans to relocate over 1,000 victims who are still living in tents to decent accommodations, one year after the Akosombo dam spillage disaster.

The MP also launched a GHC 100,000 emergency rent fund to assist these victims in securing housing as they continue to recover from the disaster.

In addition, Ablakwa committed to ensuring the total resettlement and compensation of the over 12,000 victims of the dam spillage, stating that this would be a key focus in his next term as Member of Parliament for North Tongu, an area significantly impacted by the disaster.

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This initiative was in collaboration with the Pharmaceutical Society of Ghana (PSGH) Volta Region and the Central Tongu Health Directorate.

Residents benefited from blood pressure checks, eye screenings, blood sugar level tests, malaria rapid diagnostic tests, Hepatitis B screenings, psychological counselling, and pediatric consultations, among other services.

Speaking to Adom News, the National Chairman of CPPA, Dr. Emmanuel Kwaku Ireland explained that, the initiative was crucial for providing free health insurance, renewals, and outreach services to residents affected by the Akosombo Dam spillage, which occurred in September 2023.

He emphasised the importance of this effort as part of the association’s corporate social responsibility.

Dr. Ireland noted that, residents requiring specialised care would be transferred to appropriate health facilities.

He also expressed his commitment to making this health outreach an annual event to support the community.

The CPPA, he assured, will continue to collaborate with the Central Tongu District Assembly to ensure all residents have access to quality healthcare services.

Over 1,000 residents have been screened so far, with common diagnoses including high blood pressure, Hepatitis B, and malaria.

Chief of Bakpa Avadiokome, Togbui Kwebla Sekpeti V, expressed gratitude to CPPA and PSGH for their generous support and appealed to other NGOs, stakeholders, and corporate institutions to assist the community further.

Mr Baba Awuni, the District Health Director for Central Tongu, commended the timely services and urged other corporate entities to follow CPPA’s example in aiding deprived communities.

Residents also expressed their happiness and relief, noting that the outreach would help alleviate the trauma and pain caused by the spillage.

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He said though they had begun construction on a few houses and had delivered the first 300, and the second project was also almost complete, the number of impacted individuals was enormous and additional homes were needed to accommodate them.

“We are really in need of assistance. We have seen some of the beautiful shelters you have provided in other jurisdictions, and we want to appeal to you, the IFRC, to get us some of those shelters because very soon the rain will be upon us and these tents cannot survive that,” he said.

Mr Ablakwa made the appeal when the Ghana Red Cross Society (GRCS), with support from the IFRC presented some relief supplies, which included hygiene and dignity kits, jerrycans, blankets and treated mosquito nets to the affected persons at Mepe.

The MP stated that single mothers and children were given priority during the first housing project and the second project would provide care for the aged and the physically challenged, bringing the total number of beneficiaries to 600.

However, he said, there were 12, 633 displaced individuals in the area, according to data from the Disaster Management Organisation, and only 600 of those victims would receive homes from the two projects, leaving many people in need of assistance.

Mr Ablakwa expressed his gratitude to the Ghana Red Cross Society and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent for the donation and their continuous support to, and interest in the welfare of the flood-affected persons.

He said the supplies were of utmost importance because, as part of their medical outreach with the Ghana Medical Association, they had asked that the sanitation conditions be improved because they were beginning to detect cases of typhoid and cholera.

Mr Ablakwa disclosed that the GRCS was on the ground helping with the evacuation process and providing tents to help with the victims’ relocation during the first week of the tragedy, when the flood was at its worst.

The MP said without those initial efforts and tents, “we don’t know how we would have survived the rushing floods which were devastating at that time.”

Mr Lawrence Lutaaya, IFRC’s Operations Manager-Surge told Ghana News Agency that the affected individuals would also receive financial support to start businesses to improve their standard of living.

He noted that one of the Federation’s duties was to respond to disasters, so when the GRCS notified them of the difficulties facing the people, they promptly made the appropriate preparations to assist.

Mr Lutaaya urged everyone to take the necessary precautions to protect the environment and to abstain from actions that could have a detrimental influence on it to prevent disasters. He asked the media to keep bringing attention to the needs of the vulnerable to get organisations and individuals to respond to them.

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Ablakwa said intercepted documents on his official X (formerly Twitter) page showing that ECOWAS has approved Ghana’s application for financial support for the victims.

He questioned why this fact had not been disclosed to Parliament and the Ghanaian people by the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori Atta despite having applied to the ECOWAS Commission some two weeks before the budget presentation.

“Why has the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government concealed from Parliament and the Ghanaian people that they had additionally applied to ECOWAS for financial support for the Akosombo dam spillage flood victims?”

“Intercepted documents from the ECOWAS Commission show that ECOWAS has approved US$200,000.00 (GHS2.4million) following Ghana’s application.” He said.

The North Tongu MP further stated that the NDC Caucus in Parliament “shall be promptly demanding full disclosure and total accountability on all government requests for funding submitted to international organizations and how these funds are being utilized.”

Full tweet and document below:

Why has the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government concealed from Parliament and the Ghanaian people that they had additionally applied to ECOWAS for financial support for the Akosombo dam spillage flood victims?

Intercepted documents from the ECOWAS Commission show that ECOWAS has… pic.twitter.com/oEcYE81GxI

— Sam Okudzeto Ablakwa (@S_OkudzetoAblak) December 19, 2023

He has also indicated that government through the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) will do everything possible to ameliorate their plight while working towards returning life to normal for them.

The Vice President had to cut short his four-day campaign tour of the Greater Accra Region to assess the extent of devastation following the floods.

“I share in your loss and I wish to assure you that the government through the NADMO is working round the clock to bring life back to normalcy. It is not only you who are affected by this flood; it is all of us that is why I rushed here to see you and determine the best help we can provide”, he disclosed.

He presented food items including several bags of maize, toiletries, rubber buckets, mattresses, mosquito coils, bales of used clothing plastic plates and drinking cups as well as cash, to the over 1,000 displaced persons.

Residents of four villages, Gaagbini, Dimia, Tinkaya and Banawa woke up on Thursday to see their communities totally submerged in flood waters following massive torrential rains that forced the banks of three dams to break, allowing the water from the dams to rush into the villages.

Thousands of acres of farmlands have not been spared, while livestock has been carried away by the flood waters.
Displaced persons in the affected communities are currently putting up in temporary structures including school blocks and offices of the Municipal Assembly.

The October 4 flood affected 307 people from 23 households.

Properties worth GHC 144, 710 were destroyed by the flood, according to the NADMO assessment report.

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The Assin Central legislator, after touring the flood areas in the Municipality, gave GHC 49,000 from his common fund as a relief to the affected Victims.

Background

Hundreds of people have been displaced while goods worth thousands went waste after a heavy downpour which got dozens of household flooded as a result.

Affected areas of the flood include the entire Assin Fosu Butuase, Judah Gas and Pomaa Kukuase areas.

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Properties like fridges, television sets, furniture and other electrical appliances were destroyed in the process.

Barbering shops, provision shops, drug stores and other shops which belong to radio and television repairers were also destroyed by the flood.

The course of the flood has been attributed to a chocked gutter at Assin Fosu Ajip.

Speaking to Adom News, the Assin Central MP cautioned the citizenry against littering.

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He also charged Assembly members to organize regular communal labour to avoid flooding.

Meanwhile, some victims who spoke to Adom News praised the MP for the kind gesture.