The NDC in the Volta Region expresses profound concern and disappointment following the Education Minister’s recent visit to the flood-affected communities devastated by the spilling of excess water from the Akosombo and Kpong Dams. Despite the Minister’s visit, his lackadaisical attitude toward the plight of a whooping 690 teachers and 20,495 pupils in these hard-hit communities remains deeply troubling.
The flood disaster in these communities has had severe repercussions on the education sector. Schools are in ruins, classrooms remain inaccessible and unusable, and learning materials have been washed away. The teachers and pupils in these settlements, as we speak, continue to suffer, and it is very disheartening to see the Education Ministry’s response palpably falling short of addressing these urgent needs thus jeopardizing the education of these future leaders.
We appreciate the visit by the Minister, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, and his Deputy, Rev. John Ntim Fordjour at the early stages of the disaster. Unfortunately, we are observing rather sadly, that after the visit, there is nothing significant from their outfit to ameliorate the plight of the pupils and teachers affected by the spillage to engender the academic work.
These pupils have lost their school uniforms, sandals, books and other stationeries due to the spillage. Some schools have been submerged, some flooded, roads linking these schools have become inaccessible while classrooms available are being used as safe havens for the affected victims, thus completely grinding effective learning to a halt.
We reiterate our call to the government to take immediate and decisive actions to assist these communities. The Education Minister must deliberately prioritize the rehabilitation and upgrading of the affected schools to enable students to resume their education in a safe and conducive environment.
Furthermore, the 690 teachers who have been badly affected should be assisted so they can be in the right frame of mind to educate our young ones.
