Residents of Oblogo, a suburb of Accra, are living in grave fear as two abandoned refuse dumping sites emit poisonous toxic liquid waste, which reports say has so far killed some domestic animals.
The life-threatening liquid waste, Today checks revealed, have the tendency of polluting the only source of water in the community when there is a heavy downpour.
Dr Alfred O. Vanderpuije, AMA boss
The Chief of the area, Nii Bibini III, in an interview with Today lamented that the attention of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) has been drawn on several occasions to this issue, stressing “all our efforts have received no attention from the AMA authorities”.
According to the chief, prior to the creation of the Ga West District an agreement was signed between his outfit and the AMA to conduct a study in the area and if possible relocate the dumping sites to a different place.
He disclosed that per the agreement, AMA is supposed to compensate the community with social amenities such as street lights and ensure that roads in the town are tarred and also a construction of a modern clinic.
The two dumping sites, according to Nii Bibini III, were expected to be covered after they had been fumigated.
He contended that this was to help prevent outbreak of diseases in the area.
Unfortunately, he noted, this has not been leaving many of the residents in the community in danger.
He indicated that the situation has been compounded with trucks that collect solid wastes always dumping wastes at these two sites.
“My brother just recently a dog drank a liquid from the waste and died instantly and aside from that there were reports of some fish in a nearby pond also dying when the liquid waste flew into it, so we are all scared of who might be the next victim.
…Can you imagine that insects and flies avoid and don’t hover around this water from the waste unlike other refuse dumps which often host all kinds of animals and reptiles,” Nii Bibini said.
Coming back to the agreement, he disclosed that the AMA has violated most of the clauses except the construction of a clinic which is yet to be formally opened to the public.
Against that background, he called on the AMA to immediately come to their aid and help them address the problem before it becomes worse.
Furthermore, Nii Bibini III accused the Municipal Chief Executive of the area, Alhaji Sherrif of deliberately stalling the commissioning of the new clinic.
But Alhaji Sherrif has rebutted this accusation stressing that he has nothing to do with the clinic.
STORY: ANTHONY KWESI COOMSON
