Demolitions alone will not save us from the next flood

The announcement by the National Post Flood Mitigation Task Force to demolish structures built on waterways and drainage reservations is both timely and necessary.

Coming in the wake of last week’s devastating floods which claimed more than 34 lives across parts of the Greater Accra, Central and Volta regions, the decision signals a renewed resolve to confront a crisis that has, for far too long, followed a predictable and tragic pattern.

At a press briefing in Accra on Friday, the Director-General of Joint Operations at the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) and leader of the Task Force, Brigadier General Foster Okae-Yeboah, outlined a comprehensive response anchored in recovery, relief and prevention.

This follows a directive by President John Dramani Mahama to establish the Task Force and activate a nationwide post-flood recovery and mitigation programme.

The scale of the response is noteworthy. With a commitment of GH¢350 million towards emergency relief and mitigation interventions, and the involvement of key state institutions, including NADMO, the Ghana Police Service, the Ghana National Fire Service, the Ghana Health Service and the Environmental Protection Agency, the country appears poised to respond decisively.

Yet, beyond the figures and coordination lies a more fundamental question: will this effort mark a turning point, or simply another chapter in Ghana’s long history of reactive flood management?

The planned demolition of structures sited on waterways and drainage reservations is not new.

What has often been lacking is the political will and sustained enforcement required to see such exercises through to their logical conclusion.

Too often, initial enthusiasm fades, resistance builds, and illegal structures quietly return, until the next rains expose the same vulnerabilities.

Brig. Gen. Okae-Yeboah’s call for cooperation from “owners and occupiers of structures located within waterways, drainage reservations and other environmentally sensitive areas” is therefore critical.

 But cooperation must not be optional. It must be backed by firm, consistent enforcement that leaves no room for compromise or selective application.

The Task Force’s broader clean-up and recovery exercise targeting refuse, silt, collapsed structures and debris clogging drains and waterways is equally essential.

These efforts, if sustained, can help prevent secondary disasters such as cholera, typhoid and other waterborne diseases, which often follow in the wake of flooding.

The involvement of the Ghana Armed Forces in leading the operational aspect of this exercise may provide the discipline and urgency required.

 Likewise, the mobilisation of military engineers and specialised equipment to clear major drains, streams and rivers offers hope for immediate relief.

The support from private sector organisations described as an act of patriotism and corporate social responsibility also deserves commendation.

But national resilience cannot depend on emergency mobilisation alone.

It must be built on everyday responsibility by institutions and citizens alike.

Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies must move beyond directives and demonstrate leadership within their jurisdictions.

 Sanitation must not be an occasional campaign but a continuous civic duty. Planning laws must be enforced not selectively, but uniformly and without fear or favour.

Equally, the public must heed the call to action: keep drains free from refuse, desist from indiscriminate dumping, report blocked drains and dangerous structures, and comply with public health advisories.

These are not mere suggestions; they are obligations tied directly to our collective safety.

The floods have once again exposed the cost of inaction measured not only in infrastructure damage, but in human lives lost. That cost is too high to be paid repeatedly.

This moment must not pass like others before it. The demolitions must proceed.

The clean-up must be sustained. The laws must be enforced.

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