AVOID BAGRE DAM DISASTER (AUGUST 21, 2010)

IT is here again. The annual ritual of spillage of the Bagre Dam was finally carried out by our brothers in Burkina Faso yesterday.
Some 24 hours later — that is by today or early tomorrow — the spillage of the dam would lead to the spillover of the White Volta Basin and its tributaries, which could cause flooding of communities that are located in the catchment areas of these rivers.
The communities that are likely to be affected are in the West Mamprusi, Central Gonja, Tolon/Kumbungu and Saboba districts in the Northern Region and the Bawku West and Builsa districts in the Upper East Region.
We recall that when a similar exercise was undertaken barely three years ago, it led to major floods that devastated the Upper East Region and some parts of the Northern Region.
The destruction and human misery was shocking. Indeed, so devastating was the situation that the government declared all three northern regions disaster zones.
Figures released by the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) and the Ministry of the Interior at the time indicated that 227,812 people in the Northern Region, 37,429 in the Upper East Region, 7,811 and 473 in the Upper West Region were all severely hit.
It is, therefore, heart-warming that the Upper East Regional Minister, Mr Mark Woyongo, upon receiving the notice from the electricity company SONABEL through the Ghana Embassy in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, subsequently warned communities along the White Volta Basin in the region to relocate to higher ground to avoid any eventuality.
The DAILY GRAPHIC is also enthused that NADMO has positioned itself strategically to protect the people in the face of any disaster.
Given the wise saying that “prevention is better than cure”, we would like to add our voice to the call on inhabitants in the White Volta Basin to take a cue from the disaster caused by the previous spillage and adhere to all the early warning signals by moving from the area for their own sake. This way things will not get out of hand for the people to call for emergency attention.
By all means, let us avoid the massive loss of lives, livestock and farm produce, untold hardship and the extensive damage to property and infrastructure which were encountered in the wake of the 2007 spillage.
But shall we, as a people and a nation, live with this annual ritual perpetually? Must we be on the receiving end anytime the Burkinabes open the floodgates of their dam?
To the Upper East Regional Minister, the answer is a BIG NO. He has, therefore, observed that the solution to the annual ritual of spillage from the Burkinabe dam is to construct a dam to harvest the spillage for conservation, which could be used as a source of hydropower and irrigation in his region.
The DAILY GRAPHIC urges the government to critically examine the submission made by the minister with the view to bringing this annual ritual to an end.
Our 'fire service' approach to solving the problem does not seem to be working, as we continue to suffer destruction to properties and loss of lives.
Much as residents living downstream are advised to evacuate before the approach of the flood waters to avoid imminent dangers, destruction to lives and properties still occur. What is also disastrous is the damage to farmlands, which threatens food security in the country.
We, therefore, call for a multi-sectoral approach to solving the flooding problem once and for all.