The Volta River Authority (VRA) is being urged by the Minority in Parliament to assume the duty of constructing temporary pavilions for students impacted by the overflow of water from the Akosombo Dam.
Over 14,000 students have had their academic activities interrupted as a result of the situation, according to statistics from the North Tongu Education Directorate. This is because different classrooms are being used as safe havens for affected residents.
The ranking member of Parliament’s Education Committee, Peter Nortsu-Kotoe, stated in an interview with Citi News that the VRA needs to provide funding in order to address the issue.
“The classrooms have become safe havens for the victims, and they are occupying all the classrooms. Some of the classrooms are still under water, and so the VRA must commit some money to put up pavilions so that the schools can reopen for normal academic work to resume,” he said.
Additionally, the Minority supported the Ghana Education Service’s (GES) decision to impose administrative penalties on school administrators who permitted JHS I and II students to sit for the 2023 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE).
“The policy is that you write your examination in JHS3, and that has been the policy. So any school authority that violates that policy opens himself or herself up to any punitive measures. The Minority will not be against the GES making this policy work, otherwise, students in other schools will be disadvantaged, and the system will not be in order,” Nortsu-Kotoe said.
Relatedly, victims of the Akosombo Dam spillage have been reassured by the government and the Volta River Authority (VRA) that every effort will be made to promptly restore their means of subsistence.
Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the VRA, Ing. Edward Ekow Obeng-Kenzo, stated the Authority has been extremely concerned about the welfare of the victims during his remarks at the media briefing in Accra recently regarding the government’s ongoing efforts to restore normalcy in the flood-affected areas.
