By Elsie Appiah-Osei, GNA
Accra, July 01, GNA — The New Patriotic Party Minority Caucus in Parliament is demanding an urgent briefing from Mr Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, the Minster of Health, on steps to prevent disease outbreaks after Monday, June 29, floods.
The floods which Alhaji Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak, the Minister for the Interior, said, killed 12 people and affected more than 38,000 residents, raised public health concerns according to the Caucus.
Mr Alexander Afenyo-Markin, the Minority Leader, made the call at a press conference in Parliament House on Tuesday.
The floods also displaced 7,761 households across the Greater Accra Region.
Citing the risk of communicable diseases, Mr Afenyo-Markin said Parliament must be updated on the government’s health response.
“Overflowing sanitation facilities create conditions for the rapid spread of communicable diseases,” he said.
“The minority is therefore pressing for an urgent briefing by the minister of health on the steps being taken to monitor affected communities for early signs of disease outbreak, what emergency supplies have been supplied to flood-hit areas, and what surveillance is in place should an outbreak occur,” he added.
He said the Minister must also explain the government’s preparedness to respond to any emerging public health emergency in flood-hit communities.
The Minority further accused the government of alleged worsening environmental degradation through policies it says have encouraged illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey.
Mr Afenyo-Markin, also the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament for Effutu, alleged that the establishment of GoldBod and the Bank of Ghana’s Gold-for-Reserves programme had “entrenched illegal mining activities,” contributing to flooding.
“Illegal mining destroys the very watersheds, wetlands, and river systems that would otherwise channel rainfall away from our cities and farmlands.
“A government that subsidises these natural defences with one hand cannot credibly claim with the other hand that this year’s flooding was an act of nature,” he said.
He added: “The minority holds the government accountable for the galamsey policy that is contrary to its own campaign promise and is contributing to the disaster it is now claiming to be responding to.”
The Minister for the Interior said, the Ghana Meteorological Agency recorded 169.2 mm of rain in Accra on Monday, June 29, making June 2026 the wettest June since 1995 with 593.2 mm.
The Minister’s report to parliament also announced 12 dead, seven missing, and 38,802 people affected.
Meanwhile, the government has announced GH₵300 million from the contingency fund for relief and mitigation and plans to demolish structures on six encroached wetlands in Accra.
The NPP Minority Caucus has also demanded that the amount package be shared equitably across all affected regions, “not concentrated in Accra, and wants a full regional breakdown of spending published.”
While the President announced GH¢300 million from the contingency fund, it was revealed on the Floor of Parliament on Tuesday by the Minister for the interior that the amount had been amended from GH₵300 million to GH₵350 million by the Minister of Finance, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson.
As a result, the Minority said the package should “be applied equitably across all affected regions. Not concentrated solely on the national capital because it draws the most media attention.”
“Government must publish a full breakdown of relief and mitigation spending by region. So that Ghanaians outside Accra are not left behind simply because they are suffering without television coverage,” Mr Afenyo-Markin stated.
GNA
Edited by Christabel Addo
Reporter: Elsie Appiah-Osei, GNA
Email: [email protected]