The Minister of Transport, Joseph Bukari Nikpe, has announced a decisive shift in maritime safety enforcement, promising to prosecute boat owners and operators found culpable in accidents, effective immediately.

The tough stance follows the recent tragic boat disaster on the Volta Lake that claimed the lives of 16 people.

In an exclusive interview on JoyNews on Monday, October 20, Mr Nikpe detailed new measures being implemented, including the strategic deployment of a newly acquired search and rescue vessel and the establishment of dedicated safety oversight offices.

The minister's comments underscore the government's recognition that, historically, operators have enjoyed impunity after such incidents.

Mr Nikpe confirmed that the government has already bolstered its emergency response capability on the Volta Lake, one of the world's largest man-made reservoirs and a critical transport route, often fraught with hazards.

"We have stationed a search and rescue vessel. We just acquired it, and it was delivered last month, stationed at Kpando Torkor to be able to rescue should there be any issue of accident," the Minister revealed.

This new vessel, strategically placed at Kpando Torkor near the lake's central crossing points, marks a significant investment aimed at cutting down the critical response time to emergencies, which is often cited as a major contributing factor to high casualty counts in past disasters.

To maintain day-to-day oversight, the ministry is establishing new administrative infrastructure.

"We are also creating an office in Akosombo to oversee the day-to-day surveillance on our waters regarding safety."

The new enforcement regime will be centred on preventing the two most common causes of fatal boat accidents: overloading and the non-use of life jackets. Mr Nikpe outlined the precise checks that the newly deployed safety guards will conduct at major landing sites.

"Now, what our safety guys will do is to ensure that they will look at the capacity of each boat. That is to prevent overloading. And again, when all passengers are on board, they are all supposed to wear life jackets before the boat will be allowed to move."

The recent disaster that killed 16 people involved a single boat carrying 24 passengers, a figure the Mr cited as evidence of reckless endangerment.

"This particular accident, 24 people in one boat. Definitely something went wrong," he emphasised, strongly suggesting that the boat's licensed capacity was dangerously exceeded.

The most significant change is the move toward criminal accountability for boat owners and masters. The Minister noted that past accidents, while tragic, failed to deter reckless practices because of the absence of legal consequences for those responsible.

"We will now begin to prosecute boat owners and operators."

He sharply criticised the previous reaction to maritime tragedies.

"Over the years, they've gotten it free that any accident, we all rush in the Ghanaian way to express our condolences, mourning with them and grieving with them and at the end, the boat masters go scot-free."

Going forward, a database and clear chain of responsibility will be established to link operators directly to any disaster.

"From now on, our safety guards are at the point of contact to be able to know you owe this boat, you didn't comply, and this accident has occurred; you will be held responsible."

Minister Nikpe concluded by urging community involvement, stressing that ensuring safe travel is a collective responsibility involving operators, government agencies, and local leadership.

"We also call on the individuals, the community leaders and other stakeholders to help in this enterprise of ensuring that our people are safe when they are travelling around."