Residents affected by the June 29 floods are calling for support as many continue to count their losses in some of the hardest hit communities.
At Alajo, one of the areas affected by the floods, 2024 independent presidential candidate Freedom Jacob Caesar, also known as Cheddar, visited residents and said the disaster should not be treated as an isolated event.
According to him, the repeated nature of flooding in parts of the country shows the need for Ghana to pay closer attention to development, especially in vulnerable communities.
“It is not the first time and it is not the second time. It has happened many times,” he said.
He said the floods should push the country to look beyond emergency response and focus on the deeper development gaps that continue to expose residents to danger whenever it rains.
“I think that God is telling us that as a nation we should concentrate on development. We are talking of social development and human development,” he said.
Cheddar said his visit to Alajo had exposed the difficult living conditions in some urban communities, where poor housing, weak drainage and limited basic infrastructure make residents more vulnerable during floods.
“I have come to Alajo and clearly we can see that there is a slum in the city, and when there is a flood, they become the victims,” he said.
He called for a broader national approach to the flooding problem, saying responsibility should not be left to government alone.
“I also want to urge the government to understand that development is not only based on the government, but the nation can be part of it,” he said.
He added that Ghana must take drainage and basic infrastructure seriously if the country wants to reduce the repeated destruction caused by floods.
“We need to take into consideration how we are going to find ourselves developing not only our gutters, but the entire basic infrastructure as well,” he said.
Cheddar also stressed the importance of dredging, saying choked drains and weak drainage systems continue to worsen the impact of heavy rains.
“Dredging is very important. I know people have lost their homes, people have lost their clothes and their jobs,” he said.
He said his immediate response was to provide some basic relief items to affected residents, including food, water and clothing, while assessing what further support could be extended to them.
“The first thing that I thought of is first to bring some food, to bring some water, to bring some clothing and then see how best we can help the people in the area,” he said.
By Noble Crosby Annan
