Member of Parliament for Sene East, Dominic Napaare has warned of acute food shortage and hunger next year if extraordinary measures are not taken to ramp up food production.
He said this is due to the floods in so many communities caused by the overflow of the Volta Lake and the spillage of the Akosombo Dam.
For weeks now, thousands of residents in parts of the Volta, Eastern and Greater Accra regions have been displaced, with their homes submerged and properties, including farmlands, destroyed due to the spillage of excess water from the dam.
The Volta River Authority (VRA) says it has concluded the spillage of the dam, however the flood waters are yet to fully recede in several of the affected communities.
But the Sene East MP said several hectares of rice farms, yam and other food crops have been taken over the flood waters.
“…There would be serious hunger this year because of the destruction of the farmlands and other properties,” he said.
Also, MP for North Tongu Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has been taking on government for what he says is the silence on compensating victims of the Akosombo Dam spillage-induced floods.
“We have not heard anything about compensation apart from the need to relocate people out of the schools. People have lost everything they have worked for – their farms, livestock, homes, etc why is the VRA silent on compensation? Why have they not asked community leaders to submit the documentation that we possess? People should not think that they can create this man-made disaster and get away with it,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Energy and the Management of VRA are set to appear before Parliament on Wednesday, November 8, to provide an update on the Akosombo Dam spillage and its repercussions on communities along the Volta River basin.
Speaking in Parliament, the Minister of Energy, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, assured that his outfit would provide the necessary accountability.
“Even though VRA is under the Ministry of Energy, we take responsibility. It is a national disaster, an emergency. It is not only affecting people in the South… I am not the lead government agency.”
“There is an inter-ministerial advisory team, but we will take responsibility and come to inform you about what VRA has done and hasn’t done once we have completed everything… And I do pledge that if it is next week Wednesday, I will be here with VRA,” he stated.