News
Blue Cresent residents raise concerns about flood, bad roads
Residents of Blue Cresent in the Katamanso Municipality of the Greater Accra Region have raised concerns about the effects of continuous rainfall in the area which causes flooding on their roads.
Roads according to residents, were usually covered in water, making it difficult for vehicles the ply the roads. 
That, they complained had affected livelihoods as residents were unable to access transportation to carry out their daily activities within and outside the community.
Consequently, drivers had taken advantage of the situation to increase transport fares since they had to deal with the impact of the flooding on their vehicles. In an interview with the Spectator, a motorist, Mr Kelvin Tamakloe, lamented “It is difficult to ply the roads, and commercial drivers are affected by the flood.
We find it difficult to pass through some roads due to potholes covered by the flood.”
He went on to highlight the damages these floods caused their motorcycles adding that commercial riders spent their profit repairing damages the floods caused their motorcycles which consequently result in the increase in fares.
Thieves he said, also took the opportunity to snatch bikes from riders due to the slow movements caused by the bad nature of the roads.
“Some drivers close very early to avoid being attacked at night, living commuters to their fate,” he stated.
“Transportation issues here are troubling and causing we commercial drivers a lot, we spend so much repairing our vehicles than we save,” Mr Benjamin Kofi, a commercial driver said.
According to him, most of his colleague drivers stopped loading to the community because of the bad nature of the road and concentrated on working in other communities.
Madam Diana Kaba, a resident said businesses were being affected by this situation since finding a vehicle to move around had become a problem.
“Uber and Bolt drivers do not accept any ride to the community because of the fear of damaging their vehicles, the ones that accept charges additional, most times our movements are restricted especially when there is a torrent,” she said.
“We also have to depend on commercial Kia drivers or private cars to convey us to our destinations when we sometimes stay out late, because most commercial drivers would not work when it’s past 7 pm, and we have also lost trust in “okada” drivers because most of them have taken advantage of the situation to steal from us, they drop you somewhere quiet and rob you of your belongings,”she stressed.
Courtesy the benevolence of some members of the community,some of the potholes had been partially fixed with a spread of sand and stones to improve the road conditions temporarily.
The Assemblyman for the area Mr Samuel Abbrey, had not been left out of the frustrations as he said, “ I have my two cars at the fitting shop because of the bad nature of the road, it is something I am so much aware of which also affects me but it is beyond my control, I have spoken to authorities but all to no avail.”
According to the Assembly member, the government had turned deaf ears to their plights after several petitions and demonstrations.
Mr Abbrey said “if I say there is hope, I will be misleading you because there is no sign of hope, what I am seeing now is that, the government is trying to punish the whole of the Katamanso municipal.
It is the central government that is supposed to work on the road but there is no sign that the road will be fixed,” he stated.
By Francisca Kaba (UNIMAC GIJ)
A member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Dr. Sammy Ayeh has picked up nomination forms to contest for the position of Deputy National Communications Officer position.
Announcing his intention, Dr. Ayeh said he is offering himself to help communicate the party’s vision clearly and connect its message with the aspirations of Ghanaians.
He expressed deep gratitude to the party’s National Communications Officer, Lawyer Sammy Gyamfi, describing him as an able leader on whose shoulders he has risen.
“His exceptional leadership, mentorship and confidence in me have shaped my journey and strengthened my resolve to serve,” Dr. Ayeh stated.
He said if elected, he will seek to build on that foundation by strengthening research-driven communication, empowering grassroots communicators, and enhancing strategic media engagement.
Dr. Ayeh humbly appealed to party members and supporters for their support.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
The Data Protection Commission has called on the Minority Caucus in Parliament, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, JoyNews and other media houses to protect the personal information of 1,964 Ghanaians evacuated from South Africa.
In a press release issued on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, the Commission expressed concern over the public disclosure of the evacuees’ personal details, including their names, signatures and records of financial assistance received.
It warned that making such information public could expose the affected individuals to identity theft, fraud and other forms of harm, especially given the threats to their safety that some of them may have faced.
The Commission explained that the 1992 Constitution protects the dignity and privacy of every individual. It also cited the Data Protection Act, 2012 (Act 843), which sets out rules for the lawful collection, use and disclosure of personal information.
While acknowledging the importance of transparency, parliamentary oversight, the right to information and press freedom, the Commission stressed that these principles do not automatically justify the unrestricted publication of personal details.
It said the disclosure of the records by the Minority Caucus, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, JoyNews and other media organisations must be assessed based on the law, the purpose of the disclosure and the privacy rights of the individuals involved.
The Commission further noted that although the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Parliament are registered data controllers in good standing, their registration does not exempt them from their legal responsibilities under the Data Protection Act.
It has therefore urged all the parties involved to take appropriate steps to protect the affected individuals, including immediately restricting access to or removing personal details from publicly available records where their continued disclosure is not legally justified.
The Commission announced plans to conduct a regulatory review to determine whether the disclosures had a lawful basis, what safeguards were applied and whether the privacy rights of the evacuees had been adequately protected.
It said it would engage the relevant parties as part of the review and take appropriate regulatory action if any breach of the law is established.
The Commission reiterated that protecting personal information and respecting human dignity must remain central to efforts to promote public accountability.
By: Jacob Aggrey
