The Minority Spokesperson on Energy, K.T Hammond has declared his unflinching support for government’s decision to demolish buildings on waterways.
Following floods and a deadly explosion at a GOIL fuel station at the Kwame Nkrumah Circle, the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) has began demolishing fuel stations and other structures which it said have been built on waterways.
[contextly_sidebar id=”XxfRmYUJ2gT1eV6IKsB4B487LXwkEJFr”]Some Ghanaians have described the move as a knee jerk reaction which will not yield any result but the Member of Parliament for Adansi Asokwa disagreed, arguing that the move will prevent floods in the future.
“We need to clear the constructions on waterways so that we don’t have a repeat of what happened,” the MP said.
He described the construction of buildings along waterways as a “serious act of indiscipline,” adding that “no one has the right to block a waterway for their own personal benefit.”
MMDAs can be sued over demolitions – Lawyer
A legal practitioner Egbert Faibille has however said that owners of demolished structures can drag the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to court if constitutional provisions for such exercises are not adhered to.
According to Egbert Faibille, the constitution specifies what the Assembly should do before pulling down structures.
He noted that according to the Local Government Act 1993, Act 462, section 52 “where a physical development has been or is being carried out without a permit contrary to this act or the conditions incorporated in the permit are not complied with, a district planning authority may give a written notice in the prescribed form to the owner of the land requiring the owner…to show cause in written…why the unauthorized development should not be demolished.”
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By: Marian Efe Ansah/citifmonline.com/Ghana