Residents of Teshie and Nungua, two suburbs of Accra, have expressed anger at the Public Utilities and Regulatory Commission (PURC) for allegedly forcing them to drink salty water produced from the Teshie Desalination Plant.
They, therefore, petitioned President Akufo-Addo to intervene in the matter, saying the move by PURC is a gross violation of their human rights.
“The drinking of water from the desalination plant by people in Teshie and Nungua is a human right issue, therefore our constitutional human rights must be respected by all in this case,” according to the residents.
The petition, with signatures of about 150 people and copied to the Speaker of Parliament, Prof Aaron Mike Ocquaye, disclosed that “it’s our right to choose what to drink and what not to drink, what to eat and what not to eat so PURC should stop imposing unwholesome water on us to drink.”
According to them, “PURC should also stop forcing and threatening Ghana Water Company Limited to open the desalination plant. It has threatened to use the military to force GWCL to reopen the desalination plant.”
“Are they the ones to drink the water? Or is that how a constitutionally mandated institution should behave?” they quizzed.
By Melvin Tarlue