Flood, fire disaster: Govt must enforce laws to avert recurrence - Christian Council

The Christian Council of Ghana is urging government to enforce the country’s laws and statutes to avert a recurrence of last Wednesday’s twin flood and fire disaster.

Most Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Asante, who is Chairman of the umbrella institution that unites 15 churches in the country, was speaking on Joy FM’s Christian Talk show ‘A Walk With Jesus’ Sunday evening.

“I believe that there are laws in this land that if we were to go by these laws and implement them, we would not get to where we are. There statues are there, AMA statues. The trouble is that we not enforcing our statues”, he said.

He said besides asking Ghanaians to be disciplined and stop littering, the government must also be responsible and enforce its laws.

The country is still re-adjusting after a devastating flood and fire disaster on Wednesday evening which claimed over 200 lives, destroyed properties running into millions of cedis and brought many businesses to a standstill on Thursday June 4, 2015.

On how to lessen the effect of the disaster on victims, Prof. Asante suggested that the Christian community can partner government to resettle the victims and help re-integrate them back into society.

“There are people who have lost capital and wouldn’t even know what to do, and I am wondering whether the Christian communities can come together and come up with a programme in support of whatever government is doing to re-settle these people”, he said.

Prof. Asante said skills training would be a better long-term assistance to the flood victims than distribution of say mattresses and food.

Also, General Secretary of the Council, Rev. Dr. Kwabena Opuni-Frimpong urged politicians to be mindful of what they say as the nation initiates a healing process.

“Politicians must be very mindful of what people are going through so that they don’t play the blame game card now. We don’t need that”, he stressed.

Rev. Dr. Kwabena Opuni-Frimpong says government in partnership with the Christian Council of Ghana will be organising a non-denominational memorial service for the lost souls on Wednesday June 10, 2015 at the Osu Presbyterian Church.