By Kofi Akordor
From their contorted faces, one could easily read the agony of motorists as they meandered their way through potholes, trenches, ponds and mud after the heavy rains. Not that most of our roads are vehicle-worthy all-year round. Most of them have been death traps, in spite of numerous assurances by the authorities to put them in good shape.
After last year’s rains, there were promises to reconstruct what was left of the roads in Accra and other major towns in country. Tema, the country’s main port city, virtually had all its main roads unmotorable and it was a pity seeing motorists struggling to commute within what was once the pride of the nation.
Unfortunately, whether due to the proverbial lack of funds, bureaucracy or a combination of both, most of the roads remained in their deplorable state until this year’s rains set in and made a bad case worse.
This year’s problem has been compounded by the heavy rains which are unprecedented in recent times. The rains and the consequent floods have rendered most of the roads in Accra dangerous for vehicular traffic. So bad is the situation that before one leaves the house, one has to plot his/her movement, trying to choose between the lesser of two evils.
We know the problems but we are hard up when it comes to the solutions. We know that most of our roads are poorly constructed with shallow drains which get flooded at the slightest rain. We know our drains are choked with refuse and waste but we are unable to do anything about it. We know that a lot of unauthorised structures have sprung up all over the city but any attempt to rectify the situation is either heavily politicised or done half-heartedly.
Whichever way one looks at it, the city authorities cannot escape blame. Why should they allow most of these illegal structures to assume permanent homes before trying to demolish them? It is also an open secret that some unscrupulous workers of the metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies and organs such as the Tema Development Corporation and the Town and Country Planning Department indulge in criminal activities and assist in the construction of some of these illegal structures.
Unfortunately, none of such officials has been made to face the law, a situation which create room for more of the illegalities. We are used to seeing “Stop work, produce permit” printed on buildings in Accra and other places. But work never stops but continues to completion, not because a permit has been produced or the building is not interfering with the original plan of the area.
The usual philosophy of “man must live” always holds sway and private interest becomes more paramount. A few individuals may go home richer, but when the rains comes it is the whole community that suffers.
Accra has become a huge flood-prone zone because over the years several residential areas have developed without proper layout and officers who should ensure that the right was done will tell you that they have been frustrated in their work by politicians and other powerful persons who should have known better.
This year, as in previous years, has witnessed expressions of concern and the pledge by officials to take steps to avert future floods and their devastating effects. But how long shall we continue with the annual ritual of wading through flood waters, saying words of comfort and sermonising on future plans to avoid such calamities?
All this should give way to lasting solutions.
The answer lies in enforcing building regulations. There is no excuse allowing buildings to reach the lintel level before inscribing useless notices of “Stop Work” on them.
The city authorities must be firm and bold and do the right thing, without fear or favour. Giving the law a human face, as is the norm now, will not help anyone in the long run. That can only be a diversionary measure to escape responsibility.
The rains have once again exposed our lack of planning, the level of indiscipline in the country and our inability to prepare for contingencies.
fokofi@yahoo.co.uk
kofiakordor.blogspot.com
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Lessons from Milovan’s posture
By Kofi Akordor
The rapturous explosion of joy which was triggered by the Black Stars’ victory over Serbia in the World Cup match last Sunday, contrasted sharply with the gloom on the face of Milovan Rajevac, coach of the national team.
In the full glare of hundreds of television cameras, Coach Milovan snubbed Mr Kwesi Appiah, his deputy on the technical bench, and he walked away, crestfallen. Probably this is the first time that a coach of a victorious team felt so defeated, disappointed and even ‘wild’ when he should have been all smiles, dancing and hugging the technical team and players.
Various explanations came up. One was that the coach did not want to jump the gun to celebrate too early when there are many more hurdles to clear. Of course this could not make sense; otherwise no team would celebrate goals until the last whistle. Another, which came closer to the truth and which is the subject of this article, was that the coach did not want to be seen jubilating over the defeat of his country.
Nobody was expecting Coach to be ecstatic about Serbia’s defeat. But is snubbing the most reasonable thing to do? At least as a coach of a winning team, a polite shake of hands would do and as Ghanaians, we would understand the conflicting emotions stirring within the Serb.
Coach Milovan’s agony began when Serbia was drawn in the same group as Ghana at the group stages. The question then was which comes first — professionalism or nationalism?
Meanwhile Coach Milovan continued to assure Ghanaians that his heart was with the Black Stars and that he was not going to allow any nationalistic feelings to cloud his professional judgement. But what we saw last Sunday was a complete betrayal of an inner feeling that was hard to suppress. Perhaps Coach Milovan was counting on a draw so that duty to country and job would have been satisfied before Asamoah Gyan’s late penalty strike made the difference.
The disappointment was evident in the post-match conference when Coach Milovan declared; “Perhaps we (Ghana) got more lucky than them (Serbia), because we scored one goal, and we obtained the three points today. I hope Serbia can pick up six points from their next two games”. Serbia had since plucked three points from Germany and perhaps will add another three from Australia.
The important question is what happens if destiny should smile on Ghana and Serbia and the two should meet again in the tournament; say in the final? We may not be second time lucky and history is there as a guide.
In 1974, a Yugoslav coach led then Zaire to be slaughtered 9-0 by the then Yugoslavia in a World Cup match. In 1990 in Italy, Cameroon lost by a 4-0 margin to the then Soviet Union when it was being coached by a Soviet. This was a time when Cameroon was showing a lot of promise on the world stage. In 1998, Nigeria suffered a similar fate, when under Coach Bora Milutinovic of Yugoslavia; they went down 3-0 in the hands of Yugoslavia in France. In 2002, Cameroon again lost 2-0 to Germany when they were under Coach Winfried Schafer, a German. You may say these are cruel coincidences since Frenchman Bruno Metsu led Senegal to beat France in 2002 in a World Cup match.
But the question which continues to pop up is, when shall we, as a sovereign nation, begin to take up the mantle of leadership in all spheres of our national life? Shall we begin to beat the inferiority trap and see merit in our own selves? What have foreign coaches got up their sleeves which our local coaches do not have? Most of these coaches have language problems which affect their ability to communicate effectively with the players, as is the case with our current coach who uses the services of an interpreter to communicate with the players.
The argument usually goes that the foreign coaches command the respect of the players. That is where the inferiority complex syndrome becomes more manifest. Why should we be running with our tails between our legs at the command of a strange white man but fail to respond to the same command because it is coming from a fellow Ghanaian?
What impression do we create in the minds of players if we are prepared to pay so much to a foreign coach to do a job a Ghanaian is capable of doing and even better, while the Ghanaian coach is paid a pittance? Immediately, we have declared our own man inferior and, therefore, does not deserve the respect accorded a foreigner. The players are Ghanaians and would not think differently from the thinking of the rest of us.
We are a sovereign nation with a common destiny. So unless it becomes necessary, we must realise that our destiny lies in our own hands. There are many who when confronted with a choice between nationalism and professionalism would choose the former and it is natural. That is why Coach Milovan’s posture last Sunday should not surprise anybody. He could have done worse.
We need coaches who will celebrate our victories not as a duty well-performed, but as shareholders in the collective fortunes of the state, just as they will mourn our loss, not as a personal failure, but as that of a proud sovereign nation.
Even though it is still early yet, there is no evidence so far to prove that the African teams with foreign coaches are putting up any exceptional performance in South Africa. This is a clear indication that the growth and survival of football on the continent should be the business of Africans themselves.
FIFA President, Sepp Blatter, the man who has done so much for African football, emphasised this point when he said most of the so-called top class coaches who come to make millions on the continent are not fit to be college coaches in their home countries. He also reiterated the point that it is time Africa began seeing its progress in the sport on the continent.
All said and done, it would be said that at the end of the day, patriotism, dedication and commitment to the national cause would be the greatest motivation for victory. Last Sunday was an experience we should learn from — that it is time to stand on our own feet.
fokofi@yahoo.co.uk
kofiakordor.blogspot.com
The rapturous explosion of joy which was triggered by the Black Stars’ victory over Serbia in the World Cup match last Sunday, contrasted sharply with the gloom on the face of Milovan Rajevac, coach of the national team.
In the full glare of hundreds of television cameras, Coach Milovan snubbed Mr Kwesi Appiah, his deputy on the technical bench, and he walked away, crestfallen. Probably this is the first time that a coach of a victorious team felt so defeated, disappointed and even ‘wild’ when he should have been all smiles, dancing and hugging the technical team and players.
Various explanations came up. One was that the coach did not want to jump the gun to celebrate too early when there are many more hurdles to clear. Of course this could not make sense; otherwise no team would celebrate goals until the last whistle. Another, which came closer to the truth and which is the subject of this article, was that the coach did not want to be seen jubilating over the defeat of his country.
Nobody was expecting Coach to be ecstatic about Serbia’s defeat. But is snubbing the most reasonable thing to do? At least as a coach of a winning team, a polite shake of hands would do and as Ghanaians, we would understand the conflicting emotions stirring within the Serb.
Coach Milovan’s agony began when Serbia was drawn in the same group as Ghana at the group stages. The question then was which comes first — professionalism or nationalism?
Meanwhile Coach Milovan continued to assure Ghanaians that his heart was with the Black Stars and that he was not going to allow any nationalistic feelings to cloud his professional judgement. But what we saw last Sunday was a complete betrayal of an inner feeling that was hard to suppress. Perhaps Coach Milovan was counting on a draw so that duty to country and job would have been satisfied before Asamoah Gyan’s late penalty strike made the difference.
The disappointment was evident in the post-match conference when Coach Milovan declared; “Perhaps we (Ghana) got more lucky than them (Serbia), because we scored one goal, and we obtained the three points today. I hope Serbia can pick up six points from their next two games”. Serbia had since plucked three points from Germany and perhaps will add another three from Australia.
The important question is what happens if destiny should smile on Ghana and Serbia and the two should meet again in the tournament; say in the final? We may not be second time lucky and history is there as a guide.
In 1974, a Yugoslav coach led then Zaire to be slaughtered 9-0 by the then Yugoslavia in a World Cup match. In 1990 in Italy, Cameroon lost by a 4-0 margin to the then Soviet Union when it was being coached by a Soviet. This was a time when Cameroon was showing a lot of promise on the world stage. In 1998, Nigeria suffered a similar fate, when under Coach Bora Milutinovic of Yugoslavia; they went down 3-0 in the hands of Yugoslavia in France. In 2002, Cameroon again lost 2-0 to Germany when they were under Coach Winfried Schafer, a German. You may say these are cruel coincidences since Frenchman Bruno Metsu led Senegal to beat France in 2002 in a World Cup match.
But the question which continues to pop up is, when shall we, as a sovereign nation, begin to take up the mantle of leadership in all spheres of our national life? Shall we begin to beat the inferiority trap and see merit in our own selves? What have foreign coaches got up their sleeves which our local coaches do not have? Most of these coaches have language problems which affect their ability to communicate effectively with the players, as is the case with our current coach who uses the services of an interpreter to communicate with the players.
The argument usually goes that the foreign coaches command the respect of the players. That is where the inferiority complex syndrome becomes more manifest. Why should we be running with our tails between our legs at the command of a strange white man but fail to respond to the same command because it is coming from a fellow Ghanaian?
What impression do we create in the minds of players if we are prepared to pay so much to a foreign coach to do a job a Ghanaian is capable of doing and even better, while the Ghanaian coach is paid a pittance? Immediately, we have declared our own man inferior and, therefore, does not deserve the respect accorded a foreigner. The players are Ghanaians and would not think differently from the thinking of the rest of us.
We are a sovereign nation with a common destiny. So unless it becomes necessary, we must realise that our destiny lies in our own hands. There are many who when confronted with a choice between nationalism and professionalism would choose the former and it is natural. That is why Coach Milovan’s posture last Sunday should not surprise anybody. He could have done worse.
We need coaches who will celebrate our victories not as a duty well-performed, but as shareholders in the collective fortunes of the state, just as they will mourn our loss, not as a personal failure, but as that of a proud sovereign nation.
Even though it is still early yet, there is no evidence so far to prove that the African teams with foreign coaches are putting up any exceptional performance in South Africa. This is a clear indication that the growth and survival of football on the continent should be the business of Africans themselves.
FIFA President, Sepp Blatter, the man who has done so much for African football, emphasised this point when he said most of the so-called top class coaches who come to make millions on the continent are not fit to be college coaches in their home countries. He also reiterated the point that it is time Africa began seeing its progress in the sport on the continent.
All said and done, it would be said that at the end of the day, patriotism, dedication and commitment to the national cause would be the greatest motivation for victory. Last Sunday was an experience we should learn from — that it is time to stand on our own feet.
fokofi@yahoo.co.uk
kofiakordor.blogspot.com
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
LESSONS FROM MILOVAN'S POSTURE (JUNE 22, 2010)
The rapturous explosion of joy which was triggered by the Black Stars’ victory over Serbia in the World Cup match last Sunday, contrasted sharply with the gloom on the face of Milovan Rajevac, coach of the national team.
In the full glare of hundreds of television cameras, Coach Milovan snubbed Mr Kwesi Appiah, his deputy on the technical bench, and he walked away, crestfallen. Probably this is the first time that a coach of a victorious team felt so defeated, disappointed and even ‘wild’ when he should have been all smiles, dancing and hugging the technical team and players.
Various explanations came up. One was that the coach did not want to jump the gun to celebrate too early when there are many more hurdles to clear. Of course this could not make sense; otherwise no team would celebrate goals until the last whistle. Another, which came closer to the truth and which is the subject of this article, was that the coach did not want to be seen jubilating over the defeat of his country.
Nobody was expecting the Coach to be ecstatic about Serbia’s defeat. But is snubbing the most reasonable thing to do? At least as a coach of a winning team, a polite shake of hands would do and as Ghanaians, we would understand the conflicting emotions stirring within the Serb.
Coach Milovan’s agony began when Serbia was drawn in the same group as Ghana at the group stages. The question then was which comes first — professionalism or nationalism?
Meanwhile Coach Milovan continued to assure Ghanaians that his heart was with the Black Stars and that he was not going to allow any nationalistic feelings to cloud his professional judgement. But what we saw last Sunday was a complete betrayal of an inner feeling that was hard to suppress. Perhaps Coach Milovan was counting on a draw so that duty to country and job would have been satisfied before Asamoah Gyan’s late penalty strike made the difference.
The disappointment was evident in the post-match conference when Coach Milovan declared; “Perhaps we (Ghana) got more lucky than them (Serbia), because we scored one goal, and we obtained the three points today. I hope Serbia can pick up six points from their next two games”. Serbia had since plucked three points from Germany and perhaps will add another three from Australia.
The important question is what happens if destiny should smile on Ghana and Serbia and the two should meet again in the tournament; say in the final? We may not be second time lucky and history is there as a guide.
In 1974, a Yugoslav coach led then Zaire to be slaughtered 9-0 by the then Yugoslavia in a World Cup match. In 1990 in Italy, Cameroon lost by a 4-0 margin to the then Soviet Union when it was being coached by a Soviet. This was a time when Cameroon was showing a lot of promise on the world stage. In 1998, Nigeria suffered a similar fate, when under Coach Bora Milutinovic of Yugoslavia; they went down 3-0 in the hands of Yugoslavia in France. In 2002, Cameroon again lost 2-0 to Germany when they were under Coach Winfried Schafer, a German. You may say these are cruel coincidences since Frenchman Bruno Metsu led Senegal to beat France in 2002 in a World Cup match.
But the question which continues to pop up is, when shall we, as a sovereign nation, begin to take up the mantle of leadership in all spheres of our national life? Shall we begin to beat the inferiority trap and see merit in our own selves? What have foreign coaches got up their sleeves which our local coaches do not have? Most of these coaches have language problems which affect their ability to communicate effectively with the players, as is the case with our current coach who uses the services of an interpreter to communicate with the players.
The argument usually goes that the foreign coaches command the respect of the players. That is where the inferiority complex syndrome becomes more manifest. Why should we be running with our tails between our legs at the command of a strange white man but fail to respond to the same command because it is coming from a fellow Ghanaian?
What impression do we create in the minds of players if we are prepared to pay so much to a foreign coach to do a job a Ghanaian is capable of doing and even better, while the Ghanaian coach is paid a pittance? Immediately, we have declared our own man inferior and, therefore, does not deserve the respect accorded a foreigner. The players are Ghanaians and would not think differently from the thinking of the rest of us.
We are a sovereign nation with a common destiny. So unless it becomes necessary, we must realise that our destiny lies in our own hands. There are many who when confronted with a choice between nationalism and professionalism would choose the former and it is natural. That is why Coach Milovan’s posture last Sunday should not surprise anybody. He could have done worse.
We need coaches who will celebrate our victories not as a duty well-performed, but as shareholders in the collective fortunes of the state, just as they will mourn our loss, not as a personal failure, but as that of a proud sovereign nation.
Even though it is still early yet, there is no evidence so far to prove that the African teams with foreign coaches are putting up any exceptional performance in South Africa. This is a clear indication that the growth and survival of football on the continent should be the business of Africans themselves.
FIFA President, Sepp Blatter, the man who has done so much for African football, emphasised this point when he said most of the so-called top class coaches who come to make millions on the continent are not fit to be college coaches in their home countries. He also reiterated the point that it is time Africa began seeing its progress in the sport on the continent.
All said and done, it would be said that at the end of the day, patriotism, dedication and commitment to the national cause would be the greatest motivation for victory. Last Sunday was an experience we should learn from — that it is time to stand on our own feet.
fokofi@yahoo.co.uk
kofiakordor.blogspot.com
In the full glare of hundreds of television cameras, Coach Milovan snubbed Mr Kwesi Appiah, his deputy on the technical bench, and he walked away, crestfallen. Probably this is the first time that a coach of a victorious team felt so defeated, disappointed and even ‘wild’ when he should have been all smiles, dancing and hugging the technical team and players.
Various explanations came up. One was that the coach did not want to jump the gun to celebrate too early when there are many more hurdles to clear. Of course this could not make sense; otherwise no team would celebrate goals until the last whistle. Another, which came closer to the truth and which is the subject of this article, was that the coach did not want to be seen jubilating over the defeat of his country.
Nobody was expecting the Coach to be ecstatic about Serbia’s defeat. But is snubbing the most reasonable thing to do? At least as a coach of a winning team, a polite shake of hands would do and as Ghanaians, we would understand the conflicting emotions stirring within the Serb.
Coach Milovan’s agony began when Serbia was drawn in the same group as Ghana at the group stages. The question then was which comes first — professionalism or nationalism?
Meanwhile Coach Milovan continued to assure Ghanaians that his heart was with the Black Stars and that he was not going to allow any nationalistic feelings to cloud his professional judgement. But what we saw last Sunday was a complete betrayal of an inner feeling that was hard to suppress. Perhaps Coach Milovan was counting on a draw so that duty to country and job would have been satisfied before Asamoah Gyan’s late penalty strike made the difference.
The disappointment was evident in the post-match conference when Coach Milovan declared; “Perhaps we (Ghana) got more lucky than them (Serbia), because we scored one goal, and we obtained the three points today. I hope Serbia can pick up six points from their next two games”. Serbia had since plucked three points from Germany and perhaps will add another three from Australia.
The important question is what happens if destiny should smile on Ghana and Serbia and the two should meet again in the tournament; say in the final? We may not be second time lucky and history is there as a guide.
In 1974, a Yugoslav coach led then Zaire to be slaughtered 9-0 by the then Yugoslavia in a World Cup match. In 1990 in Italy, Cameroon lost by a 4-0 margin to the then Soviet Union when it was being coached by a Soviet. This was a time when Cameroon was showing a lot of promise on the world stage. In 1998, Nigeria suffered a similar fate, when under Coach Bora Milutinovic of Yugoslavia; they went down 3-0 in the hands of Yugoslavia in France. In 2002, Cameroon again lost 2-0 to Germany when they were under Coach Winfried Schafer, a German. You may say these are cruel coincidences since Frenchman Bruno Metsu led Senegal to beat France in 2002 in a World Cup match.
But the question which continues to pop up is, when shall we, as a sovereign nation, begin to take up the mantle of leadership in all spheres of our national life? Shall we begin to beat the inferiority trap and see merit in our own selves? What have foreign coaches got up their sleeves which our local coaches do not have? Most of these coaches have language problems which affect their ability to communicate effectively with the players, as is the case with our current coach who uses the services of an interpreter to communicate with the players.
The argument usually goes that the foreign coaches command the respect of the players. That is where the inferiority complex syndrome becomes more manifest. Why should we be running with our tails between our legs at the command of a strange white man but fail to respond to the same command because it is coming from a fellow Ghanaian?
What impression do we create in the minds of players if we are prepared to pay so much to a foreign coach to do a job a Ghanaian is capable of doing and even better, while the Ghanaian coach is paid a pittance? Immediately, we have declared our own man inferior and, therefore, does not deserve the respect accorded a foreigner. The players are Ghanaians and would not think differently from the thinking of the rest of us.
We are a sovereign nation with a common destiny. So unless it becomes necessary, we must realise that our destiny lies in our own hands. There are many who when confronted with a choice between nationalism and professionalism would choose the former and it is natural. That is why Coach Milovan’s posture last Sunday should not surprise anybody. He could have done worse.
We need coaches who will celebrate our victories not as a duty well-performed, but as shareholders in the collective fortunes of the state, just as they will mourn our loss, not as a personal failure, but as that of a proud sovereign nation.
Even though it is still early yet, there is no evidence so far to prove that the African teams with foreign coaches are putting up any exceptional performance in South Africa. This is a clear indication that the growth and survival of football on the continent should be the business of Africans themselves.
FIFA President, Sepp Blatter, the man who has done so much for African football, emphasised this point when he said most of the so-called top class coaches who come to make millions on the continent are not fit to be college coaches in their home countries. He also reiterated the point that it is time Africa began seeing its progress in the sport on the continent.
All said and done, it would be said that at the end of the day, patriotism, dedication and commitment to the national cause would be the greatest motivation for victory. Last Sunday was an experience we should learn from — that it is time to stand on our own feet.
fokofi@yahoo.co.uk
kofiakordor.blogspot.com
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
NATIONAL IDENTIFICATION EXERCISE MUST NOT FAIL (JUNE 15, 2010)
The end is not in sight for the tortuous journey of the national identification exercise which was set in motion about three years ago. This is a very important national exercise which has in store a lot of benefits for the nation but it is always confronted with what otherwise could be surmountable obstacles.
The latest information released to the public about two weeks ago indicated that the exercise was to be suspended because of lack of funds, an addition to the catalogue of problems that had bedevilled this important national exercise.
Addressing the media in Kumasi, the Head of Public Affairs of the National Identification Authority (NIA), Ms Bertha Dzeble, mentioned that the deployment of field staff to the Brong Ahafo Region had been suspended because the NIA was unable to get supporting funds. She said funding was needed to fuel vehicles to transport field staff, logistics and mobile registration workstations (MRWs) to the Brong Ahafo Region.
The Head of Public Affairs conceded that the postponement would futher extend the exercise which was already behind schedule. What it meant was that the Brong Ahafo, Northern, Upper East and Upper West regions were yet to be covered.
In 2007 or so, when the exercise began, it was the expectation of many Ghanaians that it would be executed early enough to serve as a back-up for the national electoral register in preparation towards the 2008 elections. Alas, that was not to be. Right from the onset, the exercise came against numerous obstacles including lack of logistics and funds to pay personnel recruited for the exercise.
At one stage, the exercise created confusion in the minds of the public because it was taking place alongside the revision of the voters register. In all considerations, Ghanaians were expecting that after Election 2008, enough time and resources would be committed to the national identification exercise to bring it to a fruitful conclusion. However, as things stand now, it is not likely that this exercise will come to an end in the immediate future. Already, the Electoral Commission has started preparation towards the re-opening of the voters register, which will grab its fair share of public funds in addition to the use of common facilities such as registration centres.
As would be expected, the government was likely to put more premium on the voters register at the expense of the identification exercise. But should that be the case? The benefits of a national identity card are numerous to be treated in this shabby manner. The most obvious is the establishment of nationality which will in turn help in the compilation of a voters register and registration under the national health insurance scheme which is already battling with many fraudulent deals.
A well-executed identification exercise should be able to help the government to have a reasonably fair idea about the national population, even better than a national census conducted every 10 years could provide. It would also provide all the demographics like gender, age, profession, distribution and others for the purposes of planning and making projections.
The exercise may not come out with a perfect result, but all the same, it may make it easier for the state to determine nationals from non-nationals, especially, in cases where citizens are entitled to certain reliefs such as subsidies on health, education and agricultural facilities.
The security benefits are many for the security agencies, the banks, other non-financial institutions and many other commercial and public bodies that transact business with the general public.
This is an exercise that should not be handled haphazardly under any circumstance and, therefore, should be given every official support to succeed. So far, government response to the requirements of the National Identification Authority (NIA) has not been the best. It gave the impression either rightly or wrongly that the government was not interested in the national identification register and, therefore, could afford to push its success to the background.
The national identification exercise is too important to be toyed with and no amount should be considered too much for its execution. We have spent more frivolously on less important things and the exercise should not suffer because of that common refrain of lack of funds. More than three years into a national registration exercise without an end in sight is not good.
fokofi@yahoo.co.uk
kofiakordor.blogspot.com
The latest information released to the public about two weeks ago indicated that the exercise was to be suspended because of lack of funds, an addition to the catalogue of problems that had bedevilled this important national exercise.
Addressing the media in Kumasi, the Head of Public Affairs of the National Identification Authority (NIA), Ms Bertha Dzeble, mentioned that the deployment of field staff to the Brong Ahafo Region had been suspended because the NIA was unable to get supporting funds. She said funding was needed to fuel vehicles to transport field staff, logistics and mobile registration workstations (MRWs) to the Brong Ahafo Region.
The Head of Public Affairs conceded that the postponement would futher extend the exercise which was already behind schedule. What it meant was that the Brong Ahafo, Northern, Upper East and Upper West regions were yet to be covered.
In 2007 or so, when the exercise began, it was the expectation of many Ghanaians that it would be executed early enough to serve as a back-up for the national electoral register in preparation towards the 2008 elections. Alas, that was not to be. Right from the onset, the exercise came against numerous obstacles including lack of logistics and funds to pay personnel recruited for the exercise.
At one stage, the exercise created confusion in the minds of the public because it was taking place alongside the revision of the voters register. In all considerations, Ghanaians were expecting that after Election 2008, enough time and resources would be committed to the national identification exercise to bring it to a fruitful conclusion. However, as things stand now, it is not likely that this exercise will come to an end in the immediate future. Already, the Electoral Commission has started preparation towards the re-opening of the voters register, which will grab its fair share of public funds in addition to the use of common facilities such as registration centres.
As would be expected, the government was likely to put more premium on the voters register at the expense of the identification exercise. But should that be the case? The benefits of a national identity card are numerous to be treated in this shabby manner. The most obvious is the establishment of nationality which will in turn help in the compilation of a voters register and registration under the national health insurance scheme which is already battling with many fraudulent deals.
A well-executed identification exercise should be able to help the government to have a reasonably fair idea about the national population, even better than a national census conducted every 10 years could provide. It would also provide all the demographics like gender, age, profession, distribution and others for the purposes of planning and making projections.
The exercise may not come out with a perfect result, but all the same, it may make it easier for the state to determine nationals from non-nationals, especially, in cases where citizens are entitled to certain reliefs such as subsidies on health, education and agricultural facilities.
The security benefits are many for the security agencies, the banks, other non-financial institutions and many other commercial and public bodies that transact business with the general public.
This is an exercise that should not be handled haphazardly under any circumstance and, therefore, should be given every official support to succeed. So far, government response to the requirements of the National Identification Authority (NIA) has not been the best. It gave the impression either rightly or wrongly that the government was not interested in the national identification register and, therefore, could afford to push its success to the background.
The national identification exercise is too important to be toyed with and no amount should be considered too much for its execution. We have spent more frivolously on less important things and the exercise should not suffer because of that common refrain of lack of funds. More than three years into a national registration exercise without an end in sight is not good.
fokofi@yahoo.co.uk
kofiakordor.blogspot.com
National identification exercise must not fai
By Kofi Akordor
The end is not in sight for the tortuous journey of the national identification exercise which was set in motion about three years ago. This is a very important national exercise which has in store, a lot of benefits for the nation but its always confronted with what otherwise could be, surmountable obstacles.
The latest information released to the public about two weeks ago indicated that the exercise was to be suspended because of lack of funds, an addition to the catalogue of problems that had bedevilled this important national exercise.
Addressing the media in Kumasi, the Head of Public Affairs of the National Identification Authority (NIA), Ms Bertha Dzeble mentioned that the deployment of field staff to the Brong Ahafo Region had been suspended because the NIA was unable to get supporting funds. She said funding was needed to fuel vehicles to transport field staff, logistics and mobile registration workstations (MRWs) to the Brong Ahafo Region.
The Head of Public Affairs conceded that the postponement would futher extend the exercise which was already behind schedule. What it meant was that the Brong Ahafo, Northern, Upper East and Upper West regions were yet to be covered.
In 2007 or so, when the exercise began, it was the expectation of many Ghanaians that it would be executed early enough to serve as a back-up for the national electoral register in preparation towards the 2008 elections. Alas, that was not to be. Right from the onset, the exercise came against numerous obstacles including lack of logistics and funds to pay personnel recruited for the exercise.
At one stage, the exercise created confusion in the minds of the public because it was taking place alongside the revision of the voters’ register. In all considerations, Ghanaians were expecting that after Election 2008, enough time and resources would be committed to the national identification exercise to bring it to a fruitful conclusion. However, as things stand now, it is not likely that this exercise will come to an end in the immediate future. Already, the Electoral Commission has started preparation towards the re-opening of the voters’ register which will grab its fair share of public funds in addition to the use of common facilities such as registration centres.
As would be expected, the government was likely to put more premium on the voters’ register at the expense of the identification exercise. But should that be the case? The benefits of a national identity card are numerous to be treated in this shabby manner. The most obvious is the establishment of nationality which will in turn help in the compilation of voters’ register and registration under the national health insurance scheme which is already battling with many fraudulent deals.
A well-executed identification exercise should be able to help the government to have a reasonably fair idea about the national population, even better than a national census conducted at 10-year interval could provide. It would also provide all the demographics like gender, age, profession, distribution and others for the purposes of planning and making projections.
The exercise may not come out with a perfect result, but all the same, it may make it easier for the state to determine nationals from non-nationals, especially, in cases where citizens are entitled to certain reliefs such as subsidies on health, education and agricultural facilities.
The security benefits are many for the security agencies, the banks, other non-financial institutions and many other commercial and public bodies that transact business with the general public.
This is an exercise that should not be handled haphazardly under any circumstance and, therefore, should be given every official support to succeed. So far, government response to the requirements of the National Identification Authority (NIA) had not been the best. It gave the impression either rightly or wrongly that the government was not interested in the national identification register and therefore, could afford to push its success into the background.
The national identification exercise is too important to be toyed with and no amount should be considered too much for its execution. We have spent more frivolously on less important things and the exercise should not suffer because of that common refrain of lack of funds. More than three years into a national registration exercise without an end in sight is too much.
fokofi@yahoo.co.uk
kofiakordor.blogspot.com
The end is not in sight for the tortuous journey of the national identification exercise which was set in motion about three years ago. This is a very important national exercise which has in store, a lot of benefits for the nation but its always confronted with what otherwise could be, surmountable obstacles.
The latest information released to the public about two weeks ago indicated that the exercise was to be suspended because of lack of funds, an addition to the catalogue of problems that had bedevilled this important national exercise.
Addressing the media in Kumasi, the Head of Public Affairs of the National Identification Authority (NIA), Ms Bertha Dzeble mentioned that the deployment of field staff to the Brong Ahafo Region had been suspended because the NIA was unable to get supporting funds. She said funding was needed to fuel vehicles to transport field staff, logistics and mobile registration workstations (MRWs) to the Brong Ahafo Region.
The Head of Public Affairs conceded that the postponement would futher extend the exercise which was already behind schedule. What it meant was that the Brong Ahafo, Northern, Upper East and Upper West regions were yet to be covered.
In 2007 or so, when the exercise began, it was the expectation of many Ghanaians that it would be executed early enough to serve as a back-up for the national electoral register in preparation towards the 2008 elections. Alas, that was not to be. Right from the onset, the exercise came against numerous obstacles including lack of logistics and funds to pay personnel recruited for the exercise.
At one stage, the exercise created confusion in the minds of the public because it was taking place alongside the revision of the voters’ register. In all considerations, Ghanaians were expecting that after Election 2008, enough time and resources would be committed to the national identification exercise to bring it to a fruitful conclusion. However, as things stand now, it is not likely that this exercise will come to an end in the immediate future. Already, the Electoral Commission has started preparation towards the re-opening of the voters’ register which will grab its fair share of public funds in addition to the use of common facilities such as registration centres.
As would be expected, the government was likely to put more premium on the voters’ register at the expense of the identification exercise. But should that be the case? The benefits of a national identity card are numerous to be treated in this shabby manner. The most obvious is the establishment of nationality which will in turn help in the compilation of voters’ register and registration under the national health insurance scheme which is already battling with many fraudulent deals.
A well-executed identification exercise should be able to help the government to have a reasonably fair idea about the national population, even better than a national census conducted at 10-year interval could provide. It would also provide all the demographics like gender, age, profession, distribution and others for the purposes of planning and making projections.
The exercise may not come out with a perfect result, but all the same, it may make it easier for the state to determine nationals from non-nationals, especially, in cases where citizens are entitled to certain reliefs such as subsidies on health, education and agricultural facilities.
The security benefits are many for the security agencies, the banks, other non-financial institutions and many other commercial and public bodies that transact business with the general public.
This is an exercise that should not be handled haphazardly under any circumstance and, therefore, should be given every official support to succeed. So far, government response to the requirements of the National Identification Authority (NIA) had not been the best. It gave the impression either rightly or wrongly that the government was not interested in the national identification register and therefore, could afford to push its success into the background.
The national identification exercise is too important to be toyed with and no amount should be considered too much for its execution. We have spent more frivolously on less important things and the exercise should not suffer because of that common refrain of lack of funds. More than three years into a national registration exercise without an end in sight is too much.
fokofi@yahoo.co.uk
kofiakordor.blogspot.com
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
A patriot on the wanted list
By Kofi Akordor
THE customs officer was loud and boastful, his voice resonating with excitement as he proclaimed to his listeners that the identity of a certain man they had been looking for had finally been exposed, with his photograph being widely circulated so that at first sight he should be eliminated. As he was talking, he dashed to his car and brought out photo-copies of what looked like a newspaper publication with a photograph on it.
Those desperately looking for the man in question, according to the officer, included some members of staff of the Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS), the Ghana Police Service and the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS).
I got interested, for, after all, who would want to have a criminal or nation wrecker roaming about freely in the system? And who knows, I could also help in tracking down the criminal who was on the wanted list of our security agencies.
Curiosity drew me closer as I tried to see what was on the poster. That was when I had the rudest shock of my life. There was this screaming headline: “ANAS-AREMEYAW EXPOSED”.
“So this is the man being wanted by CEPS, the police and the immigration authorities?” I said to myself.
Under normal circumstances, only criminal gangs such as smugglers, drug barons, armed robbers, money launderers, counterfeit syndicates and corrupt politicians would see an inquisitive and investigative journalist as an enemy and possibly put him on their wanted list.
That was why I was shocked that some members (at least not all of them) of state institutions entrusted with the protection of the security and sanctity of the state would declare a journalist enemy number one for exposing evils against the state, the same evils officers in these organisations are paid to curb.
It is recalled that about two months ago, one of the television networks showed a documentary on the illicit dealings at the country’s borders which were recorded clandestinely. That documentary exposed some officials of CEPS and the GIS who connived with business people to smuggle cocoa out of the country.
Seriously, the documentary did not come as a shock to many. If anything, it established something which is well-known but has not been easy to prove. That was how Anas-Aremeyaw, the engineer of that documentary, came to be an enemy to these powerful state institutions.
It is an undeniable fact that a lot of dubious things happen at the border posts and other points of entry such as the harbours and the airport and the operators include a network of business people, border officials and people in political office. Whichever way you look at it, the state loses revenue.
Apart from the loss of revenue, the safety of the people and the security of the state are compromised. For instance, products that are not supposed to come into the country, such as contaminated or poorly manufactured goods, find their way onto the domestic market, just the same way as weapons and other dangerous substances find their way into the country with the criminal connivance of state security agencies.
We all know that the security and law enforcement agencies, like all other human institutions, cannot be without their fair share of deviants. But should they be so proud and arrogant as to declare a patriot a wanted person? It can only be explained that the rogues have become boastful because the rot, instead of being the exception, is virtually the norm and that has strengthened those who engage in criminal activities and bolstered them to walk with chests out, instead of bowing down their heads in shame.
There are many honest, hardworking and dedicated men and women in the various services who, against all odds, are doing their best, as required of them, in the national interest. Incidentally, most of them go unrecognised and when they finally exit from active service, they have nothing to show for it. Some even suffer persecution from those who are bent on indulging in criminal activities to enrich themselves overnight, at state expense.
Elsewhere, people like Anas-Aremeyaw would be cultivated and nurtured by the security agencies to make their work easier and more effective. The police have always been appealing for support in the form of information on criminal suspects. What happens if these informants rather become the criminals who must be hounded and cut down?
The GIS and CEPS are also institutions whose work could be significantly enhanced with information from members of the public. But that will be only when they themselves are determined to achieve results and not be part of the problem.
We do not know how many more patriots like Anas-Aremeyaw are on the wanted list of the law enforcement agencies, but the wanted notice in circulation only confirms the depth of the rot in our public institutions, which also means the security of the state itself cannot be guaranteed.
fokofi@yahoo.co.uk
kofiakordor.blogspot.com
THE customs officer was loud and boastful, his voice resonating with excitement as he proclaimed to his listeners that the identity of a certain man they had been looking for had finally been exposed, with his photograph being widely circulated so that at first sight he should be eliminated. As he was talking, he dashed to his car and brought out photo-copies of what looked like a newspaper publication with a photograph on it.
Those desperately looking for the man in question, according to the officer, included some members of staff of the Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS), the Ghana Police Service and the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS).
I got interested, for, after all, who would want to have a criminal or nation wrecker roaming about freely in the system? And who knows, I could also help in tracking down the criminal who was on the wanted list of our security agencies.
Curiosity drew me closer as I tried to see what was on the poster. That was when I had the rudest shock of my life. There was this screaming headline: “ANAS-AREMEYAW EXPOSED”.
“So this is the man being wanted by CEPS, the police and the immigration authorities?” I said to myself.
Under normal circumstances, only criminal gangs such as smugglers, drug barons, armed robbers, money launderers, counterfeit syndicates and corrupt politicians would see an inquisitive and investigative journalist as an enemy and possibly put him on their wanted list.
That was why I was shocked that some members (at least not all of them) of state institutions entrusted with the protection of the security and sanctity of the state would declare a journalist enemy number one for exposing evils against the state, the same evils officers in these organisations are paid to curb.
It is recalled that about two months ago, one of the television networks showed a documentary on the illicit dealings at the country’s borders which were recorded clandestinely. That documentary exposed some officials of CEPS and the GIS who connived with business people to smuggle cocoa out of the country.
Seriously, the documentary did not come as a shock to many. If anything, it established something which is well-known but has not been easy to prove. That was how Anas-Aremeyaw, the engineer of that documentary, came to be an enemy to these powerful state institutions.
It is an undeniable fact that a lot of dubious things happen at the border posts and other points of entry such as the harbours and the airport and the operators include a network of business people, border officials and people in political office. Whichever way you look at it, the state loses revenue.
Apart from the loss of revenue, the safety of the people and the security of the state are compromised. For instance, products that are not supposed to come into the country, such as contaminated or poorly manufactured goods, find their way onto the domestic market, just the same way as weapons and other dangerous substances find their way into the country with the criminal connivance of state security agencies.
We all know that the security and law enforcement agencies, like all other human institutions, cannot be without their fair share of deviants. But should they be so proud and arrogant as to declare a patriot a wanted person? It can only be explained that the rogues have become boastful because the rot, instead of being the exception, is virtually the norm and that has strengthened those who engage in criminal activities and bolstered them to walk with chests out, instead of bowing down their heads in shame.
There are many honest, hardworking and dedicated men and women in the various services who, against all odds, are doing their best, as required of them, in the national interest. Incidentally, most of them go unrecognised and when they finally exit from active service, they have nothing to show for it. Some even suffer persecution from those who are bent on indulging in criminal activities to enrich themselves overnight, at state expense.
Elsewhere, people like Anas-Aremeyaw would be cultivated and nurtured by the security agencies to make their work easier and more effective. The police have always been appealing for support in the form of information on criminal suspects. What happens if these informants rather become the criminals who must be hounded and cut down?
The GIS and CEPS are also institutions whose work could be significantly enhanced with information from members of the public. But that will be only when they themselves are determined to achieve results and not be part of the problem.
We do not know how many more patriots like Anas-Aremeyaw are on the wanted list of the law enforcement agencies, but the wanted notice in circulation only confirms the depth of the rot in our public institutions, which also means the security of the state itself cannot be guaranteed.
fokofi@yahoo.co.uk
kofiakordor.blogspot.com
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
DISASTER ON THE VOLTA LAKE (JUNE 1, 2010)
When the Volta River Authority (VRA) came into existence through the promulgation of the Volta River Development Act (Act 46) of the Republic of Ghana on April 26, 1961, its core business of power generation and supply for industrial, commercial and domestic use was clearly spelt out.
Nonetheless, it had other additional responsibilities including the measurement of the environmental impact of the creation of the Volta Lake on the towns and people bordering the lake.
More importantly, the VRA had been mandated to develop the Volta Lake, which is the huge reservoir of water behind the Akosombo Dam stretching 520 kilometres between Akosombo and Yapei, its north most part mainly as a source of fishing and water transportation.
In 1970, the Volta Lake Transport Company (VLTC) was incorporated with the objective of providing safe, efficient and reliable ferry services on the lake. The idea was to facilitate the movement of passengers and industrial cargo and petroleum products from the south to the north and on their southward bound trip, bring agricultural produce from the north to the south in a cheaper and more convenient manner.
The lake which borders the Volta, Eastern, Western, Ashanti and Central regions also provides transport opportunities for farmers in the various settlements and communities along the lake who use canoes to convey their produce to market centres like Dzemeni, Kpando Torkor, Kete Krachi and Dambai in the Volta Region, Adawso in the Eastern Region and many others in the Afram Plains and parts of the Brong Ahafo and Northern regions.
The Volta Lake was also expected to be an effective link between Ghana and its landlocked neighbours like Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger in the transportation of cargo discharged at the Tema Port.
While the VRA has been able to serve its mandate as the nation’s main power generator, the utilisation of the Volta Lake as a major artery between the north and the south received marginal attention. The operations of the VLTC had been inconsistent, irregular and limited to a few centres and, therefore, largely inadequate to meet the needs of the hundreds of thousands of people in the over 739 communities and settlements along the Volta Lake.
The huge vacuum created under these circumstances was filled by private boat owners and operators whose activities came under very little state control or supervision. The result had been the numerous accidents witnessed on the lake either due to overloading, poor navigation skills, badly designed boats or all of these. There is also the problem of tree stumps which have impeded smooth navigation on the lake and which are sometimes the cause of the accidents.
Any time these accidents occurred, the victims were mainly women and children who were either travelling to and from the market or schools. The news of these accidents is always received with promises to make travelling on the lake safer and more reliable.
The latest of these accidents occurred at Wusuta in the Volta Region where over 20 people, mostly women and children, lost their lives. Not that nothing was being done to stem the accidents which have become regular on the lake. Since 2006, the Ghana Maritime Authority (GMA), in collaboration with other agencies including the VLTC and the Ghana Navy intensified efforts at implementing a number of safety measures. They included the stationing of a naval task force at six major lake stations, namely Yeji, Dzemeni, Kpando Torkor, Tapa Abotoase, Dambai and Kete Krachi to enforce safety measures including overloading, drunkenness, use of defective boats and other human abuses, among others.
Other interventions included the training of 872 operators and mechanics at the six major centres and a regular inspection of boats, especially, new entrants to mark and assign them with loadlines, while defective ones were banned from operating.
What promises to be a major boost to transportation on the Volta Lake is a new partnership between Zoil Services Limited, the Ministry of Transport, the Ghana Maritime Authority and the Ghana Navy. Under this partnership, Zoil Services, which is a subsidiary of Zoomlion Ghana Limited, will train lifeguards. These guards would patrol and monitor activities on the lake in order to reduce bad practices which result in accidents. Some of these bad practices which have been mentioned earlier include overloading, poorly- manufactured boats and lack of life jackets.
Under the project dubbed; “Promoting safe travel on the Volta Lake”, Zoil would provide 10,000 life jackets for boat operators and users in addition to the lifeguards who would be stationed at various points along the lake. According to a report dated February 22, 2010, lifeguards saved a driver and his two mates from drowning when their truck loaded with farm produce fell off the Dambai ferry into the lake.
It may not be humanly possible to eliminate accidents entirely on the Volta Lake, but with these latest interventions, it is the hope of many Ghanaians that accidents on the lake would be a thing of the past.
We also expect the government to continue to work hard to ensure that the lake provides the water transportation it was envisaged under the Volta River Development Project. Measures like removal of tree stumps and the provision of more modern and safer boats for passengers and goods would be necessary to make the lake, which has enormous potential for the country’s tourism, agricultural and commercial development, safer and attractive to more people.
fokofi@yahoo.co.uk
kofiakordor.blogspot.com
Nonetheless, it had other additional responsibilities including the measurement of the environmental impact of the creation of the Volta Lake on the towns and people bordering the lake.
More importantly, the VRA had been mandated to develop the Volta Lake, which is the huge reservoir of water behind the Akosombo Dam stretching 520 kilometres between Akosombo and Yapei, its north most part mainly as a source of fishing and water transportation.
In 1970, the Volta Lake Transport Company (VLTC) was incorporated with the objective of providing safe, efficient and reliable ferry services on the lake. The idea was to facilitate the movement of passengers and industrial cargo and petroleum products from the south to the north and on their southward bound trip, bring agricultural produce from the north to the south in a cheaper and more convenient manner.
The lake which borders the Volta, Eastern, Western, Ashanti and Central regions also provides transport opportunities for farmers in the various settlements and communities along the lake who use canoes to convey their produce to market centres like Dzemeni, Kpando Torkor, Kete Krachi and Dambai in the Volta Region, Adawso in the Eastern Region and many others in the Afram Plains and parts of the Brong Ahafo and Northern regions.
The Volta Lake was also expected to be an effective link between Ghana and its landlocked neighbours like Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger in the transportation of cargo discharged at the Tema Port.
While the VRA has been able to serve its mandate as the nation’s main power generator, the utilisation of the Volta Lake as a major artery between the north and the south received marginal attention. The operations of the VLTC had been inconsistent, irregular and limited to a few centres and, therefore, largely inadequate to meet the needs of the hundreds of thousands of people in the over 739 communities and settlements along the Volta Lake.
The huge vacuum created under these circumstances was filled by private boat owners and operators whose activities came under very little state control or supervision. The result had been the numerous accidents witnessed on the lake either due to overloading, poor navigation skills, badly designed boats or all of these. There is also the problem of tree stumps which have impeded smooth navigation on the lake and which are sometimes the cause of the accidents.
Any time these accidents occurred, the victims were mainly women and children who were either travelling to and from the market or schools. The news of these accidents is always received with promises to make travelling on the lake safer and more reliable.
The latest of these accidents occurred at Wusuta in the Volta Region where over 20 people, mostly women and children, lost their lives. Not that nothing was being done to stem the accidents which have become regular on the lake. Since 2006, the Ghana Maritime Authority (GMA), in collaboration with other agencies including the VLTC and the Ghana Navy intensified efforts at implementing a number of safety measures. They included the stationing of a naval task force at six major lake stations, namely Yeji, Dzemeni, Kpando Torkor, Tapa Abotoase, Dambai and Kete Krachi to enforce safety measures including overloading, drunkenness, use of defective boats and other human abuses, among others.
Other interventions included the training of 872 operators and mechanics at the six major centres and a regular inspection of boats, especially, new entrants to mark and assign them with loadlines, while defective ones were banned from operating.
What promises to be a major boost to transportation on the Volta Lake is a new partnership between Zoil Services Limited, the Ministry of Transport, the Ghana Maritime Authority and the Ghana Navy. Under this partnership, Zoil Services, which is a subsidiary of Zoomlion Ghana Limited, will train lifeguards. These guards would patrol and monitor activities on the lake in order to reduce bad practices which result in accidents. Some of these bad practices which have been mentioned earlier include overloading, poorly- manufactured boats and lack of life jackets.
Under the project dubbed; “Promoting safe travel on the Volta Lake”, Zoil would provide 10,000 life jackets for boat operators and users in addition to the lifeguards who would be stationed at various points along the lake. According to a report dated February 22, 2010, lifeguards saved a driver and his two mates from drowning when their truck loaded with farm produce fell off the Dambai ferry into the lake.
It may not be humanly possible to eliminate accidents entirely on the Volta Lake, but with these latest interventions, it is the hope of many Ghanaians that accidents on the lake would be a thing of the past.
We also expect the government to continue to work hard to ensure that the lake provides the water transportation it was envisaged under the Volta River Development Project. Measures like removal of tree stumps and the provision of more modern and safer boats for passengers and goods would be necessary to make the lake, which has enormous potential for the country’s tourism, agricultural and commercial development, safer and attractive to more people.
fokofi@yahoo.co.uk
kofiakordor.blogspot.com
Disaster on the Volta Lake: Is it a thing of the past?
By Kofi Akordor
When the Volta River Authority (VRA) came into existence through the promulgation of the Volta River Development Act (Act 46) of the Republic of Ghana on April 26, 1961, its core business of power generation and supply for industrial, commercial and domestic use was clearly spelt out. Nonetheless, it had other additional responsibilities including the measurement of the environmental impact of the creation of the Volta Lake on the towns and people bordering the lake.
More importantly, the VRA had been mandated to develop the Volta Lake, which is the huge reservoir of water behind the Akosombo Dam stretching 520 kilometres between Akosombo and Yapei, its north most part mainly as a source of fishing and water transportation.
In 1970, the Volta Lake Transport Company (VLTC) was incorporated with the objective of providing safe, efficient and reliable ferry services on the lake. The idea was to facilitate the movement of passengers and industrial cargo and petroleum products from the south to the north and on their southward bound trip, bring agricultural produce from the north to the south in a cheaper and more convenient manner.
The lake which borders the Volta, Eastern, Western, Ashanti and Central regions also provides transport opportunities for farmers in the various settlements and communities along the lake who use canoes to convey their produce to market centres like Dzemeni, Kpando Torkor, Kete Krachi and Dambai in the Volta Region, Adawso in the Eastern Region and many others in the Afram Plains and parts of the Brong Ahafo and Northern regions.
The Volta Lake was also expected to be an effective link between Ghana and its landlocked neighbours like Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger in the transportation of cargo discharged at the Tema Port.
While the VRA has been able to serve its mandate as the nation’s main power generator, the utilisation of the Volta Lake as a major artery between the north and the south received marginal attention. The operations of the VLTC had been inconsistent, irregular and limited to a few centres and, therefore, largely inadequate to meet the needs of the hundreds of thousands of people in the over 739 communities and settlements along the Volta Lake.
The huge vacuum created under these circumstances was filled by private boat owners and operators whose activities came under very little state control or supervision. The result had been the numerous accidents witnessed on the lake either due to overloading, poor navigation skills, badly designed boats or all of these. There is also the problem of tree stumps which have impeded smooth navigation on the lake and which are sometimes the cause of the accidents.
Any time these accidents occurred, the victims were mainly women and children who were either travelling to and from the market or schools. The news of these accidents is always received with promises to make travelling of the lake safer and more reliable.
The latest of these accidents occurred at Wusuta in the Volta Region where over 20 people, mostly women and children, lost their lives. Not that nothing was being done to stem the accidents which have become regular on the lake. Since 2006, the Ghana Maritime Authority (GMA), in collaboration with other agencies including the VLTC and the Ghana Navy intensified efforts at implementing a number of safety measures. They included the stationing of a naval task force at six major lake stations, namely Yeji, Dzemeni, Kpando Torkor, Tapa Abotoase, Dambai and Kete Krachi to enforce safety measures including overloading, drunkenness, use of defective boats and other human abuses, among others.
Other interventions included the training of 872 operators and mechanics at the six major centres and a regular inspection of boats, especially, new entrants to mark and assign them with loadlines, while defective ones were banned from operations.
What promises to be a major boost to transportation on the Volta Lake is a new partnership between Zoil Services Limited, the Ministry of Transport, the Ghana Maritime Authority and the Ghana Navy. Under this partnership, Zoil Services, which is a subsidiary of Zoomlion Ghana Limited, will train lifeguards. These guards would patrol and monitor activities on the lake in order to reduce bad practices which result in accidents. Some of these bad practices which have been mentioned earlier include overloading, poorly- manufactured boats and lack of life jackets.
Under the project dubbed; “Promoting safe travel on the Volta Lake”, Zoil would provide 10,000 life jackets for boat operators and users in addition to the lifeguards who would be stationed at various points along the lake. According to a report dated February 22, 2010, lifeguards saved a driver and his two mates from drowning when their truck loaded with farm produce fell off the Dambai ferry into the lake.
It may not be humanly possible to eliminate accidents entirely on the Volta Lake, but with these latest interventions, it is the hope of many Ghanaians that accidents on the lake would be a thing of the past.
We also expect government to continue to work hard to ensure that the lake provides the water transportation it was envisaged under the Volta River Development Project. Measures like removal of tree stumps and the provision of more modern and safer boats for passengers and goods would be necessary to make the lake, which has enormous potential for the country’s tourism, agricultural and commercial development, safer and attractive to more people.
fokofi@yahoo.co.uk
kofiakordor.blogspot.com
When the Volta River Authority (VRA) came into existence through the promulgation of the Volta River Development Act (Act 46) of the Republic of Ghana on April 26, 1961, its core business of power generation and supply for industrial, commercial and domestic use was clearly spelt out. Nonetheless, it had other additional responsibilities including the measurement of the environmental impact of the creation of the Volta Lake on the towns and people bordering the lake.
More importantly, the VRA had been mandated to develop the Volta Lake, which is the huge reservoir of water behind the Akosombo Dam stretching 520 kilometres between Akosombo and Yapei, its north most part mainly as a source of fishing and water transportation.
In 1970, the Volta Lake Transport Company (VLTC) was incorporated with the objective of providing safe, efficient and reliable ferry services on the lake. The idea was to facilitate the movement of passengers and industrial cargo and petroleum products from the south to the north and on their southward bound trip, bring agricultural produce from the north to the south in a cheaper and more convenient manner.
The lake which borders the Volta, Eastern, Western, Ashanti and Central regions also provides transport opportunities for farmers in the various settlements and communities along the lake who use canoes to convey their produce to market centres like Dzemeni, Kpando Torkor, Kete Krachi and Dambai in the Volta Region, Adawso in the Eastern Region and many others in the Afram Plains and parts of the Brong Ahafo and Northern regions.
The Volta Lake was also expected to be an effective link between Ghana and its landlocked neighbours like Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger in the transportation of cargo discharged at the Tema Port.
While the VRA has been able to serve its mandate as the nation’s main power generator, the utilisation of the Volta Lake as a major artery between the north and the south received marginal attention. The operations of the VLTC had been inconsistent, irregular and limited to a few centres and, therefore, largely inadequate to meet the needs of the hundreds of thousands of people in the over 739 communities and settlements along the Volta Lake.
The huge vacuum created under these circumstances was filled by private boat owners and operators whose activities came under very little state control or supervision. The result had been the numerous accidents witnessed on the lake either due to overloading, poor navigation skills, badly designed boats or all of these. There is also the problem of tree stumps which have impeded smooth navigation on the lake and which are sometimes the cause of the accidents.
Any time these accidents occurred, the victims were mainly women and children who were either travelling to and from the market or schools. The news of these accidents is always received with promises to make travelling of the lake safer and more reliable.
The latest of these accidents occurred at Wusuta in the Volta Region where over 20 people, mostly women and children, lost their lives. Not that nothing was being done to stem the accidents which have become regular on the lake. Since 2006, the Ghana Maritime Authority (GMA), in collaboration with other agencies including the VLTC and the Ghana Navy intensified efforts at implementing a number of safety measures. They included the stationing of a naval task force at six major lake stations, namely Yeji, Dzemeni, Kpando Torkor, Tapa Abotoase, Dambai and Kete Krachi to enforce safety measures including overloading, drunkenness, use of defective boats and other human abuses, among others.
Other interventions included the training of 872 operators and mechanics at the six major centres and a regular inspection of boats, especially, new entrants to mark and assign them with loadlines, while defective ones were banned from operations.
What promises to be a major boost to transportation on the Volta Lake is a new partnership between Zoil Services Limited, the Ministry of Transport, the Ghana Maritime Authority and the Ghana Navy. Under this partnership, Zoil Services, which is a subsidiary of Zoomlion Ghana Limited, will train lifeguards. These guards would patrol and monitor activities on the lake in order to reduce bad practices which result in accidents. Some of these bad practices which have been mentioned earlier include overloading, poorly- manufactured boats and lack of life jackets.
Under the project dubbed; “Promoting safe travel on the Volta Lake”, Zoil would provide 10,000 life jackets for boat operators and users in addition to the lifeguards who would be stationed at various points along the lake. According to a report dated February 22, 2010, lifeguards saved a driver and his two mates from drowning when their truck loaded with farm produce fell off the Dambai ferry into the lake.
It may not be humanly possible to eliminate accidents entirely on the Volta Lake, but with these latest interventions, it is the hope of many Ghanaians that accidents on the lake would be a thing of the past.
We also expect government to continue to work hard to ensure that the lake provides the water transportation it was envisaged under the Volta River Development Project. Measures like removal of tree stumps and the provision of more modern and safer boats for passengers and goods would be necessary to make the lake, which has enormous potential for the country’s tourism, agricultural and commercial development, safer and attractive to more people.
fokofi@yahoo.co.uk
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