All around the world major Attractions have included cities with rivers or streams running through them. Talk about Thames in London (England); Tiber in Rome (Italy); Liffey in Dublin (Ireland); Danube in Budapest (Hungary); ... read full comment
All around the world major Attractions have included cities with rivers or streams running through them. Talk about Thames in London (England); Tiber in Rome (Italy); Liffey in Dublin (Ireland); Danube in Budapest (Hungary); Moskva, Moscow (Russia); Amstel in Amsterdam (Netherlands); Spree in Berlin (Germany); Vitava in Prague (Czech Republic); and Manzanares in Madrid (Spain).
Metropolitan leaders have turned these cities into commercial centers. High revenues are generated from such rivers through tourism, river cruising, fishing and river transport. Thoughtful investments into these rivers-bed constructions have paid off because today these cities are ranked among the world’s top tourist destinations.
Most cities without rivers running through them are now embarking on man-made river project to create artificial sites to construct first class hotels and other tourist business monuments.
So what happened to the Korle, a river that runs through Ghana’s capital Accra? Before we answer this question, let us take a closer peep at the geographical significance of the Korle River. Ghana’s Top-most hospital, Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital is situated near the Korle River. Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital was established by Ghana’s premier president, Dr. Osagyefo Kwame Nkrumah. Dr. Nkrumah established Ghana’s best hospital around the Korle River maybe due to his exposure and experience from abroad, particularly the Great Britain and the United States.
In Nkrumah’s view the Korle-Bu area was supposed to be the high-point on the High Street in the city of Accra. The High Street was supposed to be one of Accra’s longest and busiest boulevards. Dr. Nkrumah made sure that this prominent health center, Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, was linked to the Accra Prison, the Accra Library, the Bank of Ghana, the house of parliament, offices for Ghana’ political ministers, Accra Sports stadium, and the Osu Castle which house the president himself. The same High Street link Ghana’s industrial and port city, Tema. Nkrumah’s was indescribably profound in terms of his dreams and vision.
One would think that his successors would think of expanding Nkrumah’s dream. Sadly, not one had the same vision and passion for nation building as Dr. Osagyefo Kwame Nkrumah, NOT ONE. None of them saw Korle River becoming a tourist site, a pearly gate on which an in-land harbor for merchant ships and boats stood, a fishing and metropolitan transport.
Historically, the estate around Korle was a fallowed land full of mangrove plants and shrubs notable for crabs and tilapia until when it was hijacked by squatters from all over the country. I must say that Korle River was not blemished in one day. The degradation into a dumping site or a landfill was gradual. It began with indigenous residents turning their gutters and the river bank into toilets and as dumpsters.
These tarnishing behaviors emerged as a result shortage in of human-toilet carriers. Since Accra Metropolitan Association (AMA) was not fully formed as this time, it was impossible to replace toilet carriers with vehicular haulage of in Accra. I may be wrong with the historical fact but I believe that Sewage Company at this time had no vehicles to convey toilets from homes to dumping sites. The Korle case worsened when the metropolitan institution later built its main sewage facility on the River.
The squatters had since deepened the woes of the river by expanding residency into what have now become Agbogbloshie or Sodom and Gomorrah.
Recently I listened to a radio TV and commentary on Agbogbloshie. It was frustrating for me to hear Agblogbloshie characterized as the most-dirtiest, ugliest, and unhealthiest live on earth.
As I listened to the broadcast I thought about leadership, vision, and love of country. I weighed between the monetary cost of restoration and the perpetual benefits that a restoration will bring to us as a people. Then I ask myself. What is preventing our leaders from cleaning the place at least relocating the squatters? I wondered whether our leaders lack the political fortitude to mandate a relocation of these squatters. I asked myself why the traditional leaders who have so much at stake cannot team up with the political government to address this important issue. I wondered whether stakeholders will accept Ghanaian investors on any rejuvenation of the Korle River.
While my goals is not to downplay the issue broached by the minister for Local Government, i still think that the single most important sanitition venture Ghana can undertake today is that that will salvage Korle and the face of Ghana internationally. Beyond this, I believe that we will be addressing not only revenue but employment opportunities to our people. Thank you for your time.
CORNEY 9 years ago
OsofoUSA,check you facts well,Kwame Nkrumah was a kid when Korlebu hospital was established on October 9,1923!
Next time check your facts well before you write,you don't have to write about something if you don't know the fa ... read full comment
OsofoUSA,check you facts well,Kwame Nkrumah was a kid when Korlebu hospital was established on October 9,1923!
Next time check your facts well before you write,you don't have to write about something if you don't know the facts about that thing.
That said,this minister needs to examine himself well before suggesting a law be reviewd,we don't need any law before we clean our environment and you don't need to take anybody to court for not cleaning rather you give them ticket to pay at the post office or at the office of the District Assembly but before you do that you need to put measures in place to help the people clean their areas,you don't expect people to clean when they don't have a place to dump the refuse.
Make it a mandatory for every office including yours and all businesses to place trash cans in front of their buildings and it make a mandatory for businesses to construct bathrooms in their premises and should be mandatory for all petrol filling stations to have bathrooms which should be a requirement to get license to operate.
Have rest stops all over the country on the highways.
If you have all these in place you don't need any sanitation day once in a month.
the truth 9 years ago
Corney....well said!!!!
Corney....well said!!!!
Asiedu N 9 years ago
Osofo Mo ne kasa!!! We need people like u to move our nation forward, not these illiterates, good for nothing, inexperienced ministers that JDM has surrounded himself with......
Osofo Mo ne kasa!!! We need people like u to move our nation forward, not these illiterates, good for nothing, inexperienced ministers that JDM has surrounded himself with......
CITIZEN ONE 9 years ago
But, too many cooks is what has spoilt the Accra Broth.
I have never seen or heard/read so many smart and seemingly intelligent people in one place at a time like I do in Ghana, who all act DUMB!!!
Our people are lawles ... read full comment
But, too many cooks is what has spoilt the Accra Broth.
I have never seen or heard/read so many smart and seemingly intelligent people in one place at a time like I do in Ghana, who all act DUMB!!!
Our people are lawless, some worse than animals, most uncivilized, uncultured and just ugly physically. Why would they even care about tomorrow.
You people think you have all the answers, the only solution is Shoot to Kill any squatters, law breakers and street hawkers. You hypocrites would probably excuse all these hugh open market places in Accra - Makola, Salaga, Kaneshie, Madina and a whole host of these over populated places. Where the hell do you suppose these people ease themselves, and do they even have clean water to use before going back to sell to the general public, and when they do carry their babies along, imagine how and what they do when they have to change these rugrats while selling food to the general public. We are a hopelessly sick society, and those of us who think we have all the subtle solutions are misguided. MARSHAL LAW!!! POLICE STATE - MILITARY RULE !!! Only language the uncivilized African Knows or better yet RE-COLONIZATION!
OsofoKoo 9 years ago
What people are we? What really is our national interest? Where is the leadership we used to have? Why are our security “people” sleeping in the face of inducements? Why are our political leaders continually becoming corr ... read full comment
What people are we? What really is our national interest? Where is the leadership we used to have? Why are our security “people” sleeping in the face of inducements? Why are our political leaders continually becoming corrupt. Who left the doorpost ajar? Why do we create dirt thoughtlessly and insult those who reprimand for doing so? Why should we urinate or toilet anywhere we deem fit, as long as the corner is “OK” for us? Why should be be proud to refer to ourselves as a lawless people? Why are our lands sold without proper planning? Why do we forget to include public restrooms or toilet facilities or urinals in our city plannings.
Perhaps it does not matter who were are; whether we are Christians or Muslims or traditionalists, or literates or illiterates, or poor or rich, or young or old or male or female, or our ethnicity - It is that we have all evolved into one careless and thoughtless nation?
So what underlie our lawless-indiscriminate behaviors and attitudes as a people? Have we totally lost control of direction? Or is it that we have become entirely selfish? Is that we simply do not care about the future of our children? Is it the case of poor memory of who our ancestors were? Did we forget the good days when paid sanitary workers cleaned our towns and villages? Are we becoming less wise as a people? Were our ancestors wiser than we are today? Didn’t they mobilize the cleaning of our streams and rivers? Didn’t our mother get up early in the morning to clean in and around our homes? Didn’t our town-council men and women clean our streets in those days? So what happened to us in the course of the years?
What happened during the transition from traditional to mass political leadership? Who dropped the ball? Why didn’t our contemporary leaders build on those good values of our forefathers and foremothers? How did we get to where we are now? Shouldn’t we go back to our roots? Should we go back to the days when our leaders organized public forums to facilitate discussion of our problems? Shouldn't our politicians thinks in terms of how they can re-conceptualize the ideals of our ancestors? Should the media rethink their role in nation building? Should our traditional rulers reconsider their place in nation building at least in the local context? Shouldn’t the clergy begin to consider educating their members about these social issues hampering our progress? Shouldn’t our schools be reformed to address the values we uphold as a people? Should our parliamentarians reorient their love of country? Should we come together as one nation and leave behind the petty issues that separate us? Shouldn't we all begin to think about how we can offer constructive criticisms that will move our nation forward? Should we “check ourselves first before we point fingers at others? Shouldn’t we think about the legacy we can leave to the next generation to come?
Who else can help the government educate our people?
Think about these things my friend.
All around the world major Attractions have included cities with rivers or streams running through them. Talk about Thames in London (England); Tiber in Rome (Italy); Liffey in Dublin (Ireland); Danube in Budapest (Hungary); ...
read full comment
OsofoUSA,check you facts well,Kwame Nkrumah was a kid when Korlebu hospital was established on October 9,1923!
Next time check your facts well before you write,you don't have to write about something if you don't know the fa ...
read full comment
Corney....well said!!!!
Osofo Mo ne kasa!!! We need people like u to move our nation forward, not these illiterates, good for nothing, inexperienced ministers that JDM has surrounded himself with......
But, too many cooks is what has spoilt the Accra Broth.
I have never seen or heard/read so many smart and seemingly intelligent people in one place at a time like I do in Ghana, who all act DUMB!!!
Our people are lawles ...
read full comment
What people are we? What really is our national interest? Where is the leadership we used to have? Why are our security “people” sleeping in the face of inducements? Why are our political leaders continually becoming corr ...
read full comment