The Acting Chief Executive Officer of Ghana Shippers Authority, Prof Ransford Gyampo, has disclosed that severe water shortage has hit Saltpond and its environs in the Central Region.
According to him, the situation is so dire that health officials in the government hospital in the town are struggling to discharge their duties.
“My caretaker told me there is no water in Saltpond for the past six months, so I decided to install a polytank to supply water to the community. Unfortunately, after the tank was installed, we went in search of water from as far away as Elmina, but to no avail,” he recalled during discussions on The KeyPoints on TV3.
“I called the District Manager of Ghana Water Limited, but he could not be of help,” he said on April 5.
Prof Gyampo lamented that the situation has affected the livelihoods of many residents and resulted in rising cases of cholera.
He revealed that, “the cause of the water shortage is that the stream that serves as the source of supply for the Ghana Water Limited had dried up.”
Prof Gyampo further indicated that the cause of the dry stream could be traced upstream to activities of illegal miners.
He reiterated his stance against mining of lithium in the community.
“To the chiefs of Saltpond, do you see why I was against the mining of lithium in the community. From what I have seen, if care is not taken, even when we sink a borehole, we will not find water,” he cautioned.
Prof Gyampo called on relevant stakeholders to go to the aid of residents of Saltpond.
