The chiefs and people of Akwamu Gyakiti in the Eastern Region have appealed to the Volta River Authority (VRA) and the government to fashion out a scheme to compensate those who lost their lands and properties during the construction of the Akosombo dam.
Chief of Akwamu Gyakiti who spoke on behalf of the people said the action had caused them unbearable hardship as a result of the loss of property including large hectares of lands.
They acknowledged that though the construction of the dam was to serve the energy needs of the country including Gyakiti, it was imperative for government to adequately compensate the affected residents to continue their livelihood.
Thousands of Acres of land were taken from most residents including those on which households and farmlands were located for the construction of the Akosombo Hydro Dam in the 1960s but though compensations were promised for the community, this promise has not materialized.
Chief of Akwamu Gyakiti, Nana Manfe Otuobeng III in an interview expressed regret at the failure of successive governments to give to the people the needed assistance owed them as a result of the action.
“Sixty years up till now, the compensation that they have to give to us, up till now, nothing has happened like that. We keep on pressing and asking, we don’t know where to go now,” lamented the chief.
Explaining the effects of the construction of the dam on the people six decades on, the chief said the activity left many residents stranded, compelling them to travel far and from their homes in Gyakiti to other parts of the country to find other opportunities.
“The water has affected our vast tracks of land which have been taken away from us that up till now, there’s nothing that we’re gaining from that. It’s disturbing the community [and] because of that, a lot of the community people have travelled to Sefwi and all this kind of other places to find a job because their cocoa farms were taken away,” he said.
According to Nana Otuobeng, several efforts to access the needed compensation for the people have yielded no results.
Though the chief couldn’t immediately say how many people were affected, he said “thousands of acreage” were taken.
He disclosed that the community, aside giving out lands to the VRA for the dam also gave out same to the company for its resettlement purposes which has also seen no compensation for them.
“We also gave them the lands for resettlement which is about 4000 acres…for the New Adjena Resettlement and up till now, nothing has happened,” he said.
The resultant economic hardships imposed by the situation, the chief added have contributed to the scourge of teenage pregnancy in the community.
He, therefore, pleaded with the VRA and the government of Ghana for the payment of adequate compensation for the people.
“We those who have been affected [by the construction of the dam], the compensation that is due us must be compensated; so we are appealing to the government to do that for us,” he appealed.
He also tasked the Asuogyaman District Assembly to ensure that the 36 acres of lands he gave out to the Assembly and the National Youth Employment Agency for fish processing and farming activities respectively must be harnessed to ensure the provision of job opportunities for the youth of the community.
Mmrantehene of Gyakiti, Kwadwo Agyei wondered why the Authority has refused to provide any kind of corporate social responsibility (CSR) for the community or employ its people in any of its facilities.
“The VRA is not helping us in any way. They have refused to build even a school for us, they have refused to build toilets, same with our roads so it is very bad. They accrue a lot of income from the dam but indigenes of the community are not employed by the VRA, not even cleaners so we don’t benefit in any way from the VRA,” he said.
