Abofu Residents Demand Compensation As Gutter Expansion Forces Evacuations

Residents of Abofu in the Okaikwei North Municipality are demanding compensation after being ordered to vacate their homes and businesses to make way for an ongoing gutter expansion project.

The residents say they have been given little notice to leave, have not received compensation and now face losing their homes and livelihoods as demolition works begin.

They say the exercise follows the heavy rainfall on 29 June, which caused flooding in parts of the community.

Some residents told 3Music TV that officials inspected the area about two weeks ago before returning this week to inform them that the structures marked along the drainage channel would be demolished if they failed to move.

“I have nowhere to go with my family and we have not been compensated either,” one resident said. “We even had to pay GH¢1,000 for people to help us move our structures.”

Shop owners say they were aware of plans to expand the drainage system but did not expect the project to affect their businesses.

“We were told they wanted to expand the gutter, but we didn’t expect it to affect our shops because this is not a major road. I have operated my shop here for 22 years. This is the third time they have claimed they are expanding this gutter. We asked about compensation, but they told us there would be none,” another resident said.

Others said they were struggling to find alternative accommodation after receiving what they described as insufficient notice.

“I don’t have anywhere to move to. We have not been given enough time to prepare. What do we do now that our livelihood is being taken away from us?” another affected resident said.

Another resident whose house had been marked for possible demolition said they remained uncertain about the fate of the property.

“My house has been marked but I don’t know what it means. They only came here to mark the building two days ago, so where do they expect us to go now? There is no compensation package for us either. We were even ignored when our houses got flooded,” the resident said.

Construction work on the drainage channel has already begun, with several residents and traders moving belongings from affected structures to avoid demolition.

The gutter expansion forms part of efforts to improve drainage in flood-prone areas following recent flooding in Accra.

However, the affected residents say they support measures to reduce flooding but want authorities to provide compensation and adequate time for relocation before demolishing their homes and businesses.