President John Dramani Mahama has intensified his call for stricter enforcement of planning regulations in Accra, warning that officials who authorise construction in waterways will face dismissal as government steps up efforts to address the city’s recurring flooding.
Speaking at a diaspora town hall meeting in the United Kingdom on Sunday, May 31, he said the capital’s flooding problem is driven more by human actions than by engineering shortcomings.
He explained that while Accra has drainage systems in place, poor waste management—especially the dumping of plastics—continues to block waterways and aggravate flooding during heavy rains.
According to him, weak enforcement of land-use regulations has also contributed significantly to the problem, with unauthorised developments encroaching on natural drainage paths. He cautioned that such practices put communities at risk of avoidable disasters, particularly when dams overflow or spill during periods of heavy rainfall.
“…In the dry season, traditional rulers and landowners sell land to people in the spillway of the Weija Dam. Then when the rains come and the spillway is opened, your house gets flooded with water. And people ask, why isn’t government doing anything about the flooding problem? It’s because you went and built in a place you shouldn’t have built.
“We need to punish those who sign the permits for that. The District Chief Executives I told the Minister for Local Government to find out who is signing permits for people to build in these waterways. We’re sacking them so that it serves as a deterrent,” he assured.
He further disclosed that government will also move to demolish structures obstructing water channels, insisting the measures are necessary to safeguard lives and property and curb the persistent flooding challenge in the capital.
