The Tema Metropolitan Assembly (TMA) says it will require US$ 60 million to enable city authorities to replace the broken sewage system in areas under its jurisdiction.
Most residents in the various communities in Tema continually bemoan the challenges that come with the disposal of faecal matter from their homes due to the neglect of broken downpipes and treatment plants.
A recent visit by Citi News‘ Caleb Kudah to some vicinities in Tema showed how untreated greywater and faecal matter are discharged into open-air channels and emptied into the sea.
Metropolitan Waste Management Director in Tema, Derick Tata-Anku, who blamed pressure on the over 60-year old sewage on increased population, indicated the amount is needed if steps are to be taken to tackle the leakages from the weak pipes.
“The facility has been in existence for over 60 years. All we are seeking to do is to enable it to continue to run. But the bottom line is that, it requires total rehabilitation and expansion to replace the components. But we have done so much by even inviting investors,” he said on the Citi Breakfast Show.
More chambers have been choked for years, partly due to the activities of residents who flush out foreign materials like sanitary pads, T-shirts, plastic waste among others.
Even though trucks can extract the content of choked chambers, the activities of squatters who encroach sewer lines, make such an alternative an impossibility.
Residents say faecal matter from the homes of neighbours chokes their homes, while those in flats say they have had to live with the unbearable stench of their own excreta as they say the sewage system has collapsed.
TMA helpless
Mr. Tata-Anku told host of the Citi Breakfast Show, Bernard Avle that the financial investments needed for a total overhaul are beyond the assembly’s finances.
“[Residents of] Tema have put a lot of pressure on the facility. It was designed for about 20,000 to 40,000 people 60 ago and there has been no expansion on it. Now Tema has a population of 360,000 but we are still depending on the same system. The assembly has tried to work with other partners and has to do a total rehabilitation of the system. But the financial aspect is beyond TMA’s handling. When we are looking at a project of over US$ 60 million, what revenue can we raise to do that? It’s huge money. So we really need an intervention.”