Audio By Carbonatix
President John Mahama has issued an executive order directing a nationwide demolition of unauthorized structures as government ensures that June 3 flooding disaster never happens again.
Appearing before parliament today, Deputy Local Government Minister Nii Lantey Vanderpuije indicated that the various assemblies have been notified of the President’s directive and already some have started working it out.
The directive means the ongoing demolitions in Accra is set to be replicated across various Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs).
Some MMDAs such as Ketu South Municipality which have not yet started say they are yet to receive official communication. Nonetheless, measures are already in place to carry out the President’s directive, MCE Pascal Lamptey told Joy News Wednesday.
Already Ghana’s biggest slum Sodom and Gomorrah (Old Fadama) has been erased from the city’s landscape in a three-day demolition exercise last month.
Last week, Avenor also in Accra became the latest stop of the AMA taskforce. At the Abuja slums near COCOBOD in Accra, a fire outbreak Tuesday night, spared the need for the AMA’s bulldozers to move in.
The AMA has however warned the affected not to rebuild any structure.
But the demolition exercise has come as a yet to be documented social cost. Several hundreds of families have been displaced and poverty is set to worsen among the displaced.
Many are still looking forward to government to re-settle them.
The Local Government Ministry has failed to state the number affected or provide comprehensive mitigation package for the affected.
“Nobody knows where they have gone to, nobody seems to care” the Dean of the Local Government Institute Dr. Eric Oduro Osae observed on Joy FM’s Newsnight
According to him, Section 52 of the Local Government Act enjoins government to give notice to illegal residents before demolition exercise can be carried out.
The Act also provides the affected the opportunity to explain to the Assembly why their structure should not be demolished.
He advised any one affected or yet to be affected by the demolitions to take legal actions if the Assembly failed to provide prior notice.
He expressed disappointment that the Local Government does not have “baseline information” on those affected by demolitions.
To him, a database on those affected is basic function of the MMDAs.
Latest Stories
-
Moody’s maintains Ghana’s rating at Caa1, revises outlook to positive
21 minutes -
Zambia elevates tourism education to national priority as President Hichilema backs continental summit
1 hour -
Activa promotes credit insurance to boost SME export growth
1 hour -
ILTM Africa 2026 opens doors to inbound and outbound luxury travel in Cape TownÂ
1 hour -
“BP Soul Travel and Tours scored the highest marks” – Sports Minister Kofi Adams endorses agency for World Cup travel
1 hour -
‘At the age of 12, I was teaching people and collecting money from them’ – Forty Under 40 Awards
3 hours -
I broke my virginity at the age of 26 after university – Richard Abbey Jnr.
4 hours -
Sacked for fees, saved by faith: The untold story of Forty Under 40 Awards founder Richard Abbey Jnr
4 hours -
GCB Bank surges GH¢0.45, ETI gains GH¢0.06 as GSE ends week higher
5 hours -
Two teens jailed 55 years for robbery
5 hours -
UDS demands apology for MPhil student wrongly branded as Tamale robber
6 hours -
“We don’t sell fish!” – Tema Shipyard CEO hits back over dead fish discovery
6 hours -
Sam George defends anti-LGBTQ+ Bill as ‘national priority’ amid debate over gov’t focus
7 hours -
Artemis II astronauts safely back on Earth after trip around moon
7 hours -
Sam George unveils massive 1,150-cell site rollout to end network woes
7 hours