Akotoklo -Gua, a remote farming Community in the Upper Manya Krobo Municipality of the Eastern Region has started receiving support after Starr FM reported of its impoverished condition.
Lacking all basic social amenities needed for human survival and development including road, school building, Health facility and safe drinking water making life unbearable for the inhabitants predominantly peasant Farmers, Akotoklo- Gua came into the spotlight after Starr News’ Eastern Regional Correspondent, Kojo Ansah visited the community to highlight the numerous challenges facing the community.
Key among these challenges were over 120 school children studying and writing exams on rocks due to the collapse of their bamboo shed classrooms.
Apart from the disruption of academic activities by the harsh weather conditions, teachers and pupils were always alert to avert snake bites.
As if that is not enough, school children had no other alternative than to drink heavily polluted water drawn from a stream which is the only source of water for the inhabitants.
Since the report, the Upper Manya Krobo District Assembly and the MP for the area, Joseph Tetteh have not done anything about the distressful plight of the people as their living standards deteriorate with pregnant women and children feeling the brunt.
“We don’t have good water to drink, our road is terrible no car comes here, pregnant women had to endure to sit on motorbikes to hospital. During emergencies at night, we carry the pregnant woman on a local stretcher. When you develop serious complications you will die, it has happened to some pregnant women here others gave birth on the road. At first, some don’t go to the hospital but now there is no traditional birth attendant here,” a distraught resident told Starr News.
The displaced school children in Akotoklo-Gua Roman Catholic School have been relocated to a Pentecost Church building but without furniture hence learn on the floor.
Joseph Nyarko, Headteacher of the school told Starr News, the school closes whenever the Church has activity during the day.
An abandoned six-unit classroom block started two years ago has now been turned into a school garden by the pupils.
Kloma Hengme Association, made up of philanthropists and volunteers from Krobo land has meanwhile, visited the community through its Rural Watch Project to provide free health screening, donate educational materials and farm inputs to the inhabitants as well as second-hand clothes.
The Association says it is currently mobilizing resources to drill a borehole for the community and support the construction of the school building abandoned at the footing level.
Chairman of Kloma Hengme Association, Isaac Tarmattey Otu, however, called on the political actors to also do their part to fix the other basic infrastructural challenges to provide a decent living condition for the people.
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM/Kojo Ansah
