Dear President John Dramani Mahama,
Please accept my warm congratulations on your decision to declare a two-day nationwide clean-up campaign to help mitigate flooding across parts of Ghana.
Your personal involvement in this exercise sends a strong message that environmental issues are shared national responsibility.
However, Your Excellency, I respectfully wish to submit that this initiative also presents an opportunity for deeper reflection.
Should a nation have to rely on periodic national clean-up campaigns when there are state institutions specifically mandated to keep our drains clear, our roads maintained, and our communities clean throughout the year?
In the past, agencies such as the Department of Urban Roads routinely desilted drains before the rainy season, cleared sand deposits from roads, weeded street shoulders, and patched potholes. These preventive measures significantly reduced the risk of flooding, improved road safety, and created employment opportunities for many hardworking Ghanaians through maintenance contracts.
Today, many of these institutions still have dedicated personnel on their payroll, yet they are unable to perform effectively because they lack the necessary logistics, equipment, and operational funding. Consequently, routine maintenance is neglected until problems escalate into disasters that demand emergency interventions at a much higher cost.
Your Excellency, effective governance is not measured only by how well we respond to emergencies but also by how successfully we prevent them. Investing in the capacity of our public institutions to perform their statutory duties consistently is more sustainable, more economical, and more beneficial than periodic clean-up exercises.
I therefore humbly appeal to you to strengthen the institutions responsible for sanitation, drainage maintenance, road maintenance, and environmental management by ensuring they receive the resources, equipment, and funding required to discharge their responsibilities throughout the year. Such an approach will not only reduce flooding but also improve public health, create jobs, protect infrastructure, and restore public confidence in our institutions.
Mr. President, the Ghanaian people are hopeful that under your leadership, government institutions will be empowered to function efficiently and proactively. The lasting solution to many of our recurring challenges lies not in emergency responses but in building strong institutions that work every day for the benefit of the people.
It is my sincere prayer that the Lord Jesus Christ grants you wisdom, courage, and discernment as you lead our nation. May He guide you and your advisers to make decisions that will ease the burdens of the Ghanaian people and leave a legacy of accountable, responsive, and effective governance.
May God bless you, bless your leadership, and continue to bless the Republic of Ghana.
Respectfully yours,
Godfried Kudzo Akpanya
Okushibiade, Ga West Municipal
Tel: 0244819075
