On Thursday, April 4, 2024, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Obuasi West, Kwaku Agyeman Kwarteng, and the Chief Executive for the Obuasi Municipal Assembly, Elijah Adansi-Bonah, inspected the damage caused by the rainstorm at Koffekrom in the Obuasi Municipality.
Over 500 people were displaced after about 60 building roofs got ripped off.
The worst-affected areas of the rainstorm included Bogobiri, Obuasi Senior High Technical School, and AngloGold Ashanti School.
The MP and the MCE visited the chief's palace and the Obuasi Sec Tech campus with the Assembly member for the area and some party officials.
At the chief's palace, Mr. Kwarteng commiserated with them for losing valuable properties during the rainstorm and assured the people that he would liaise with the Municipal Assembly and the central government to offer the necessary support to the victims.
"I must applaud the MCE for visiting you earlier. After an assessment by NADMO and the engineers of the Assembly, GH1.5 million is needed to compensate our victims. My office is in talks with the Assembly to fast-track the process to raise this amount," he said.
In an interview with the media after the tour, Kwaku Kwarteng said the devastating nature of the disaster calls for a concerted effort to refurbish some buildings of the school, stressing that he will lead the process of refurbishing the science resource center of the school.
He further appealed to well-meaning Ghanaians, companies, and institutions to also come on board and assist in rebuilding the Koffekrom community.
Mechanised borehole:
The Obuasi West MP told the chief and the people that he would build a mechanized borehole for the 'Bayport' section of the community in fulfillment of his earlier promise to them.
According to the Obuasi Municipal Chief Executive, Elijah Adansi-Bonah, the Assembly considers the re-roofing of one of the dormitories of Obuasi Sec Tech affected by the rains a priority and has employed workers to fix them.
He said NADMO officials and some officers of the Assembly were dispatched to the scene to assess the situation and report to him. He stated that the Assembly would quickly act on the report it had received.
Adansi-Bonah explained that those who were displaced have been given alternative accommodation by the Assembly and praised Abadwumhene Nana Professor Amoako Atta for earlier donating to the community.
While calling on others to complement the government's efforts in supporting the victims, the MCE assured that valuable lessons have been learned from the disaster; hence, the Assembly will intensify publicity on disaster prevention and management.
While recounting the losses, the headmaster of Obuasi Senior High Technical School, Ernest Wiafe, commended the Obuasi Municipal Assembly for taking swift measures to re-roof some of the buildings.
Nana Kojo Obeng, Odikro of Koffekrom, commended the MP and the MCE for expressing concern and sharing their grief.