The Ranking Member on Parliament’s Committee on Defence and Interior, Rev John Ntim Fordjour, has called on the government of Ghana to render support for persons affected by the recent tragic fire and explosion incident that occurred at Konongo Odumase in the Asante Akim Central Constituency.

Speaking to the media in Parliament on Friday, March 14, 2025, Rev Ntim Fordjour cited the case of Appiatse and urged the government to provide support for the injured and those whose residences and sources of livelihoods have been affected by the March 5 incident.

“This is really tragic, and indeed it is a sad day for Odumase and a sad day for Ghana. The closest similar incident that occurred on this scale was the one that occurred in Appiatse in 2022, which saw an explosion that razed an entire community. We saw how the government demonstrated sympathy and led many philanthropic efforts in going to the aid of Appiatse.

“The state, led by the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, together with other philanthropists, went into mobilising resources for the reconstruction of the entire community, restored the people to their livelihoods, and ensured that their lives were restored. Similar to that, we want to see similar sympathy demonstrated; we want similar leadership and support demonstrated by this government,” he said.

He applauded the government for making allocations in the 2025 Budget for the victims of the tidal waves, as well as those affected by the Akosombo Dam spillage while urging them to emulate the same towards the people of Konongo Odumase.

The call by Rev Ntim Fordjour was on the back of a statement made on the floor of Parliament by the Member of Parliament for Asante Akim Central, Kwame Anyimadu-Antwi, calling on the government to come to the aid of his constituents.

In an interview with GhanaWeb, the MP gave an account of the incident, including how five individuals lost their lives in the fire that engulfed a shop dealing in mining explosives, leading to severe casualties and property damage.



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Watch Asante Akim Central MP recount tragic Odumase explosion, call for aid: