Kufuor Damns Water Thieves

PRESIDENT JOHN Agyekum Kufuor has condemned the practice whereby individuals tamper with water supply lines to serve unauthorized ends.

He therefore called on Ghanaians to report these individuals promptly to the police and the water authorities for appropriate action.

President Kufuor made the condemnation when he commissioned the 28.2 million Euros Kwanyaku water supply project at Kwanyaku in the Central region.

The project, the largest district-based water supply systems in Ghana, would serve six districts namely, Agona, Gomoa, Mfantsiman, Ajumako-Enyam-Essiam, Asikuma -Odoben- Brakwa and Ewutu –Efutu- Senya. It was funded by the Dutch Government's Mixed Credit Facility under the ORET program.

Additionally, over 700, 000 people would benefit from the project, which would supply about six million gallons a day to the catchment area up to the year 2020.

Commissioning the project , President Kufuor remarked that the project would not only bring to an end the acute water shortage the residents had been experiencing for some years now, but would as well spare the women and children the ordeal of walking long distances in search of water.

He said without constant maintenance however, such a facility would break down.

President Kufuor reminded the people of the unhappy fate that befell the old plant, which almost collapsed as a result of poor maintenance and challenged the beneficiaries to look after the expensive and vital project with care to guarantee its life span.

He expressed appreciation to the Netherlands government for its numerous assistance in water projects, and mentioned in particular, the expansion of Cape Coast and Baifikrom water systems, which were at the various stages of completion and the intervention made at Winneba and Sekondi-Takoradi.

The Managing Director of Ghana Water Company, Cobbie Kesse, disclosed that the project involved the construction of a new plant, replacement of main pipelines, reinstatement of reservoir capacity, rehabilitation and refurbishment works at the old treatment plant as well as the construction of additional 4,620, 000 gallons a day.

According to him, additional intervention to make water accessible to the poor was being undertaken.

The Minister of Water Resources Works and Housing, Hackman Owusu Agyeman said water is life and the uninterrupted flow of it should mean the injection of life into existing businesses for increased employment opportunities.

He bemoaned the way some people play politics with the shortage of water and noted that the government had injected huge capital in water projects, which was unprecedented in the history of the country.

The Netherlands Ambassador to Ghana, who paid a growing tribute to the government for its efforts in water projects, pledged his government's continual support for Ghana.