The Member of Parliament for Sagnarigu and member on Parliament's Finance Committee, Atta Issah, has defended the government's handling of the Greater Accra Resilient and Integrated Development (GARID) Project, insisting that delays in its implementation were caused by fiscal constraints rather than abandonment.

Speaking in an interview on JoyNews The Pulse, Mr. Issah said the Mahama administration inherited severe economic challenges that compelled the Finance Ministry to impose expenditure controls across government, affecting several projects, including GARID.

He stressed that the measures were part of broader efforts to restore fiscal discipline and stabilise the economy.

"When the government assumed office, it was confronted with an extremely difficult fiscal situation. The Minister for Finance therefore had to introduce expenditure controls across several sectors, not only Works and Housing. It was not because the government wanted projects to stop, but because fiscal discipline was necessary to stabilise the economy," he said.

According to him, the temporary slowdown in the GARID Project should not be interpreted as a lack of commitment by the government. "It is not targeted at one particular project or sector," he added.

Mr. Issah also challenged claims that the government had neglected the World Bank-funded flood mitigation programme, arguing that official engagements with the World Bank demonstrate the administration's commitment to completing the project.

He disclosed that after discussions with the World Bank, the government proposed the withdrawal of US$10.5 million, while an additional US$13.8 million that had previously been set aside for the project had been restored.

He further revealed that the government had submitted a comprehensive restructuring request to the World Bank and was seeking additional fiscal allocations for the project during the mid-year budget review in July.

"These are not actions of a government abandoning the project. They are actions of a government correcting temporary fiscal constraints that we were confronted with as a nation," he stated.

Addressing concerns over the recent devastating floods in Accra, the Sagnarigu MP said the GARID Project cannot be judged as a failure because many of its interventions are still ongoing.

"The project is not fully complete," he said, noting that engineering designs have already been completed and submitted to the World Bank, while a flood early warning system has also been established.

He cited recent forecasts by the Ghana Meteorological Agency warning of more heavy rainfall as evidence that flood preparedness remains critical.

Mr. Issah argued that Accra's flooding problem extends beyond funding and is compounded by poor urban planning, encroachment on waterways and delays in enforcing planning regulations.

"When the President undertook an aerial inspection of Accra, huge structures were seen sitting on waterways. Illegal construction and human activities continue to obstruct drainage systems," he said.

He noted that efforts to remove structures obstructing waterways often attract political criticism, making enforcement difficult.