MP fetes 5,500 child victims of Akosombo Dam spillage

• Mr Ablakwah (right) serving some of the children with food

About 5,500 children in the North Tongu district of the Volta Region whose families were displaced by the Akosombo Dam spillage have been feted as part of the New Year festivities.

The party was hosted by the Member of Parliament (MP) for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, last Monday, to put smiles on their faces, following the ordeal caused by the flood in October, last year.

The 300 displaced families, initially relocated to temporal safe havens, including the St Kizito Senior High School in Mepe, now reside in a 300-unit housing project constructed by the Sky Group Limited.

At the party, the children were treated to varieties of cooked meals and non-alcoholic beverages after which they were entertained with bouncy castles and other outdoor fun games.

‘Do The Right Thing’ (DTRT) Apparel Group, a private firm, donated a 40-footer container of clothes to the children while doctors, nurses and psychologists provided free medical outreach to the flood victims.

Mr Ablakwa, in an interview, reminded the government of the urgency of the situation and called for expedited actions towards the rehabilitation and reconstruction of the affected areas.

He indicated that some victims remained distressed and homeless with expectation that the government would construct houses to resettle the people like it did for the Appiatse explosion victims.

The North Tongu legislator said he expected the government to also work towards compensating the victims for losing their sources of livelihood and property to the floodwaters.

“It is only fair for government to compensate these people; it is their right; justice demands that the people must receive their fare compensation and these are some of issues we’re going to pursue in 2024.

“I am also looking forward to a parliamentary probe; we need to have a full scale parliamentary probe so that we’ll be rest assured that this thing is not going to happen again as the level of devastation caused by last year’s spillage was unprecedented,” Mr Ablakwa stated.

FROM KEN AFEDZI, BATTOR