By Bubu Klinogo.
There was near fisticuffs in Parliament during a news conference on the tidal waves destruction in Keta and surrounding areas.
Deputy Majority Leader, Alex Afenyo-Markin addressed the media where he accused the residents of being responsible for the destruction caused by the waves.
He showed a picture of several tipper trucks lined up on a coast line being loaded with beach sand. He used that to demonstrate that the people of Keta are engaged in serious sand winning.
”I am calling once again on our colleagues in the Volta region to look at this as a national disaster and not look out for scoring cheep political point because obviously we never heard them talk about the human activities going on at the Keta area which has lead to the unbearable effect of what we are seeing today. And in all the address not a single statement was made.”
”Meanwhile the activities of sand winners are all over the place and is recorded, is on the internet is happening daily yet no MP from that area the Volta Caucus did not even mention it and you have estates doing some research and you have an individual making a remarks that they don’t have gold, they don’t have fish so the they are going to mine the sand, is there, so for them to keep quiet, and attempt to make a partizan comment and as it were, blame it on the government as though the government does not care about the situation there.”
However, some Minority MPs who were around, challenged that assertion. MP for South Dayi, Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor, who hails from Woe in the Anloga district wanted to react. He collected the picture, however before he could get to the podium, Mr. Afenyo-Markin and Dr. Stephen Amoah forcibly took the picture away from him. Dr. Amoah again attempted to disrupt his address which resulted in some heated exchanges.
MP for Ellembelle Emmanuel Armah Kofi Buah described the comments by Mr. Afenyo-Markin as shameful.
”The Deputy Majority Leader Honourable Afenyo- Markin would come to this podium and do a press conference not to address the crises and the suffering of the people of Ketu South who are going through so much as we speak almost about 500 homes have been destroyed only to basically came and spill propaganda he holds a picture, and the authenticity of that picture, he couldn’t prove it. We were just trying to get the picture to show you but he is running away with the picture he refuses to give the picture to us, quite frankly it is unfortunate the issue of sand winning is a very serious problem, not only in the Volta region but across the country the issues we are talking about are more than sand winning, first of all, we are dealing with immediate crises just imagine waking up one morning and everything you’ve worked for your whole life is gone, and the government that is supposed to be responsible and at least came to your aid does not show up and the answer from NADMO is that there is no resource”, according to MP for Ellembelle Emmanuel Armah Kofi Buah.
