Asylum Down drainage needs repairs

Published in the Daily Graphic on 17/6/2010, pg 23

Story & Picture: Matilda Attram

Residents of Asylum Down in Accra have expressed worry about the poor state of the main drainage system in the area.
They complained that the drain which served as the major drainage system in the area and other neighbouring areas had been destroyed by the recent rains and people who use it as their place of convenience and a dumping ground for waste.
According to them, the state of the drain posed danger to their lives and properties and also affected their health because of the indiscriminate dumping of human excreta and waste.
When the Daily Graphic visited the drains yesterday, it observed that part of its walls had broken down while other parts were cracked.
Madam Agartha Frimpomaa, a resident, who narrated the situation to the Daily Graphic, said a contractor started building the walls of the drain about four years ago but could not complete it.
She said the contractor came back four months ago to continue the work which had then reached parts of her house, stopped the work and had since not returned.
“We have tried calling him since last week when the walls got broken by the rains but to no avail. He only tells us there is no money to continue,” she stated.
Madam Frimpomaa, who is also a trader at the Kantamanto market, stated that she got home from the market last Wednesday only to find out that parts of her walls were broken with other parts cracked due to the rains.
She also made it known that the rains damaged some properties since water entered the rooms in the house, adding that: “Now we don’t know our fate during the next rainfall, especially when we are not at home.”
Another resident in the area who wants to remain anonymous, in reaction to the dumping of rubbish into the drain, said people continued to use the drain as their place of convenience and dumping ground which caused health hazards to residents.
‘’People keep on defecating into the gutter and if you question them, they rather threaten you. I observed a situation where one lady was chased up just for complaining when someone was doing it right in front of her house,’’
He said the area faced many challenges and the poor state of the drain was one of them.
He also indicated that there was only one public toilet situated around the Kwame Nkrumah Circle which served the area apart from others in neighbouring areas.
According to him, the situation had been reported to authorities in charge of the city but had received no favourable response.
Other people who were not residents but had their businesses situated in and around the area also shared their views on the bad stench in the area and appealed to the city authorities to take effective action.
An official of the Osu Klottey Sub-Metro District Council of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) who spoke to the Daily Graphic, revealed that the assembly gave out the contract some years ago and gave the assurance that the authorities would take measures to curb the situation.