Stop Selling Wetlands — TOR Corporate Affairs Director Calls for Major Overhaul After Devastating Accra Floods

The Corporate Affairs Officer at TOR, Godwin Mahama Ayaba, has called for urgent structural and behavioural reforms to tackle Ghana’s recurring flood disasters, warning that protecting wetlands and redesigning the country’s urban landscape are critical to preventing future tragedies.

Speaking about the recent floods in Accra on Kessben Maakye show in Accra, Ayaba described the heavy downpour as an extraordinary event, saying it was the first time in nearly a decade that Ghana had experienced rainfall of such intensity.

According to him, the rain lasted for about 10 continuous hours, leading to widespread flooding across parts of the country.
Responding to criticism over President John Dramani Mahama’s aerial inspection of the disaster zones, Ayaba defended the decision, insisting that using a helicopter was the most effective way to obtain a comprehensive overview of the flood situation.
“If anyone says the President did not have to visit the scene with a chopper, he either doesn’t know what he is saying or is mischievous. The best means to have an overview of the floods couldn’t have been better than using a helicopter,” he said, arguing that we must apply knowledge and practical judgment when assessing such decisions and desist from unnecessary propaganda.

He also disclosed that the President had directed the Ministry of Finance to release GH¢350 million to support victims affected by the floods.

Ayaba further called for a long-term redesign of Accra’s urban planning, stressing the need to decongest the capital and relocate some major state institutions to the Central and Volta regions to create more space.
He urged citizens to change their attitudes by stopping the construction of buildings on waterways and ending the indiscriminate dumping of refuse, practices he said continue to worsen flooding.

In a strong appeal to traditional authorities, Ayaba also called on chiefs to stop selling wetlands and Ramsar sites for building constructions, warning that continued encroachment on these environmentally sensitive areas would only deepen Ghana’s flood crisis.