GOVERNMENT has donated an amount of Two GHC200,000 to the victims of the Akyem Bataabi Church of Prosperity tragedy to foot their medical bills and also take care of themselves.
The Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, made the donation on Sunday when stormed the Akyem Bataabi, in the Asene Manso Akroso District in the Eastern Region, to access the situation on the grounds.
The Vice President who is on a three-day tour of the Region, after inspecting the scene met the family who lost their members in the tragedy to sympathise with them.
Earlier before visiting the scene, he addressed the chiefs and residents of Akroso where he observed a minute silence for the departed souls.
Addressing the bereaved family at the forecout of the church premises, where the incident happened, he said the government was shocked to news of the tragedy hence the need to come to their aid.
He said the government took the decision foot their bills and also support them since they many lose much in bearing the cost.
Apart from government support, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Alpha Gold Ghana Limited, Mr. Kissi Nyarko Alpha, also donated an amount of GHC10,000 to victims of Akyem Batabi church building collapse.
The support according to Mr. Nyarko, is to foot the victim’s medical expenses and their personal needs
The Chief of Akyem-Bataabi, Barima Oppong Kyekyeku who received the donation on behalf of the victims, expressed gratitude to the government for the kind gesture.
Meanwhile, the Director-General of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), Eric Nana Agyemang Prempeh, explained that the cause of the collapse of the Church of Prosperity building was a result of the use of substandard materials to construct the six-storey building.
Addressing a presser in Accra, he said preliminary investigations into the cause of the collapsed building established that, among the substandard materials used for the construction include iron rods, sand and chippings.
“He announced that the death toll at the site of the disaster had risen to 22, comprising 12 females — including a two-year-old girl — and 10 males. Eight of the 30 people retrieved from the rubbles by the search and rescue team are alive.
“Six of the survivors had been treated and discharged from the Oda Government Hospital, one was still on admission at the same facility, while the other victim had been transferred to the St Joseph Hospital in Koforidua for intensive care,” he disclosed.
He tasked the assembly to find the perpetrators of the disaster and recommend punitive actions and also to pay the medical expenses of a victim of the disaster who is on admission at the St Joseph Hospital.
The unidentified victim of the disaster is expected to pay an initial GH¢3,500 before the treatment of his fractured legs will begin.
The NADMO boss explained further that “The government cannot continue to waste the scarce national resources on disasters through the negligence of irresponsible people”.
The six-storey building which was started in 1992 collapsed on Tuesday afternoon where the Church members about 60 were resting after fasting and prayers.
Some of the members as gathered when heard the sound started running away and managed to escape but others were trapped.
The Prophet Akoa Isaac the founder who is currently assisting Police investigation told the Police in his statement that he was sick and lying in his residence on the same compound of the Church when he heard the collapsing of the church.
According to him, he was told that about 56 worshippers were in and around the building fasting and praying when the incident happened.
The Akyem – Oda Police when stormed the scene, gathered that 35 of the worshippers were seen traumatized while a 60-year-old woman identified as Afia Tamakloe, lying dead. The rest were trapped under the rubbles.
The Eastern Regional Minister, Eric Kwakye Darfour when heard the information led a joint rescue team made up of officials of the National Disaster Management Organization, NADMO, Ghana National Fire Service, Police, Ambulance Service, BNI, National Security, Military to the scene.
Meanwhile, news the taxi driver popularly known as ‘Cote d’Ivoire’ who rescued 17 persons from the Batabi collapsed building remants, has reportedly been employed as a civilian employee of the Ghana Armed Forces.
FROM Daniel Bampoe, Akyem – Bataabi