It’s been over six months now when several communities in the Northern Region got flooded due to the spillage of the Bagre Dam by Ghana’s West African neighbours, Burkina Faso, but the level of the water, according to reports, has not receded.
The flood which submerged over 200 homes along the river banks and destroyed thousands of properties have displaced many people with several others fleeing to neighboring towns and villages. While some sought refuge in nearby towns, others who did not have anywhere to go took shelter at the Roman Catholic Local Authority School. The most affected towns include Buipe and its environs in the Gonja District. The district is geographically located in between the White and Black Volta, a situation that has worsen any attempt of controlling the flooding.
At the onset of the flooding last year, several public concerns were raised and Nana Addo, flag bearer of the NPP took advantage of the situation and visited the victims as a sign of solidarity.
But today, very little is said about the plight of the victims; how they are coping with life and the number of school drop-outs due to the fact that their classrooms have been converted into unofficial residence of abode.
Interestingly, while the public, government and media’s attention seems to have shifted to other issues, the people of Buipe are still drowning in the flood.
A visit to the area by our PeaceFM Reporter, Maame Efua Koomson, reveals that though schools have re-opened, students of Roman Catholic L/A are still home as there is virtually no place for them to study. Most men have also fled the town living women, children and the aged at the mercy of the floods.
A 17 year old Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) candidate for April 2011 batch narrated the struggles he faces each day in trying to make a living as well prepare for his up-coming exams.
According to him, he has been combing the town for a permanent place to sleep and study but that has so far been in vain.
“…our house is over flooded and all my books washed away. Now I do not know how to learn as exams time approaches. What is making my situation worse is that I do not have any relative to support me, I am all alone now,” he said.
When asked about his parents, the young lad who is a product of a broken home claims the mother who used to take care of him left the village for Kumasi at the height of the flooding and has since not returned. He added that anytime NADMO visited the area with relief items he is denied access on the grounds that he is a small boy, and so has been left to fend for himself.
Apparently, the sector agency assigned to offer assistance to these people, which is the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO), has somehow also neglected them.
A member of the District Volunteer Group for assisting the victims, Umurana Adams is equally a victim of the flooding and was spotted squatting in one of the tents provided by the UNHCR.
Speaking to Peace FM news in an interview, Mr. Adams revealed that there has not been any resettlement package for the victims, leaving them at the mercy of the weather. He added that those whose homes are drying up have started moving back whiles others are rebuilding their collapsed structures.
He further disclosed that NADMO occasionally visits the area with some relief packages, but stressed that the items are woefully inadequate, and therefore called on the government to come to the aid of the people of Buipe.