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The National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) has been advised to focus on research and planning rather than managing disaster in the country.

New Patriotic Party (NPP) Parliamentary Candidate hopeful for the Akwatia Constituency, Ernest Nana Yaw Kumi has indicated that research and planning is the only way to solve the perennial flooding in the Greater Accra region.

He made this statement in an interview on Happy 98.9 FM’s ‘Epa Hoa Daben’ with Samuel Eshun, who sat in for Afrifa-Mensah. “NADMO is doing good work in managing disaster in the country but it is time we become proactive and nip perennial flooding in the bud by focusing on planning and research.”

Ernest advised NADMO to work with the town and country planning agencies to plan and map out our cities so well that flood-prone areas do not suffer any floods. “And even if they do, it should be minimal with no destruction of property and loss of life.”

The politician emphasized that the cost of planning and research is far cheaper compared to the aftermath of floods and their management.

Acknowledging the fact that the state has a responsibility to ensure the country and cities do not suffer flooding, he also pressed on citizens to also ensure proper disposal of waste and other measures to prevent flooding. “I will not shy away from saying the state has a responsibility to prevent flooding but it falls on us as individuals to make sure things move in the right direction and prevent flooding. The politician is not the only one who can effect change.”

To him, the reorientation of Ghanaians and the change of “our” mindset coupled with the amendment of laws for a societal building is the way to go in making sure Ghanaians do the needful.

The National Labour Commission (NLC) has advised employers to negotiate pay cuts, salary suspension, partial layoffs and others in good faith with their employees, so as to reduce the acrimony that will ensue as a result of frustration of contracts due to the outbreak of COVID-19.

According to the NLC, there is little resolution for contract frustration; and therefore employers and employees must resort to negotiation to address the employment challenges induced by COVID-19.

Executive Secretary of the NLC, Samuel Ofosu Asamoah, said without any fault from either party, many contracts in the media, hospitality, private educational institutions and others are incapable of being continued – a situation that has already resulted in massive layoffs and pay cuts.

“What I normally advise is negotiations. This has come as a challenge, and it faces both parties. Everyone knows and understand what is happening. Revenue streams are drying-up, and there is little to be done about that. So, what we are saying is that negotiations are needed to prevent chaos. These negotiations, though, must also be done in good faith,” Mr. Ofosu Asamoah said in an interview with the B&FT.

He added that the NLC is monitoring situations across the country, and wants to warn booming sectors during the outbreak of COVID-19 not to do anything that would amount to squeezing employees. He believes that players in the garment and pharmaceutical sectors are cashing-in on the outbreak, and therefore it would be heartless if any employee reports an employer to the Commission as a result of salary cuts attributed to COVID-19.

“The sale of hand sanitisers have gone up in price and quantity. Nose masks have also had price and quantities go up as well. If you are in any of these sectors and say because of COVID-19 you want to slash the salaries of your staff, that is not fair,” Mr. Ofosu Asamoah said.

He however reveled that, so far, three complaints have been lodged at the Commission. With this, about 500 people are at risk of losing their jobs. He indicated that the Commission is however preparing to listen to the cases and find some amicable resolutions, but the fear of job loss is eminent even after talks are over.

Meanwhile, the NLC has adjusted its operations to ensure it is able to hear labour cases while protecting the parties in the case from being exposed to the virus. Among the measure the NLC adopted is timing cases – resulting in parties being told the exact time for a case to be heard, a means to reduce numbers at their premises to offer enough space to observe the social distancing protocols.

Also, the number of cases that can be heard in one day has been reduced from 14-20 to less than 10 – while representation at every case has been reduced to three.

The Ghana Hotels Association (GHA) has described as unfair the decision by the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) to charge players in the tourism and hospitality sector for the water they used for in months of April, May and June, after the president announced a free water directive in his fifth address to the nation on measures to fight and mitigate effects of the COVID-19 outbreak on the economy.

After that announcement, the GWCL came out with a detailed clarification on the directive – stating that the free water was meant for domestic users only, and not for commercial users.

But the GHA says that clarification was misleading, because in an engagement with President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo after the announcement he expressed shock when told that players in the hospitality sector had been billed and asked to pay for the water they use for April, May and June.

Speaking to the B&FT, president of the GHA, Dr. Edward Acker Nyamekeh said: “The president was surprised when we told him we were paying for water. He immediately asked our sector minister, who was part of the meeting, to ensure it is resolved; but that is yet to come to pass, as members are paying for water.

“This sector, the most challenged, is being asked to pay for water; where are we going to get the money, considering the fact many of us are currently on shut-down. We are yet to hear from our sector minister on the matter, and we wish she will work on this urgently for us.

“We decided to petition the president, but because he directed our sector minister to work on it we trust that she is acting on it; but the delay is putting pressure on the already-challenged sector. For the three months, we know that water will not be disconnected; but the fear is that if we are not able to settle this as quickly as possible, we will be in a dire situation after June,” he said.

Communications Director for the GWCL, Stanly Martey, also told the B&FT in an interview that the directive was clear on the fact that commercial users of water were to continue paying for it. According to him, it is not only the hospitality sector that is being billed to pay but also other industries which use water for commercial purposes.

“It is not for the Hotel Association to come and tell Ghana Water what the president said. The president gave us a direct instruction: if the President tells us to give the water to hoteliers for free, why not? – because we will bill government for it and government will pay. Everybody apart from domestic users is paying for the water,” Mr. Martey said.

He added that the only commercial water users getting water for free are those who are selling to others for domestic use. For example, landlords and landladies who sell water to tenants and community members must allow the use of water for free from April to June; and must also register with district offices of the GWCL to be eligible for commission/compensation.

“Some of these people have invested in water-tanks and others and sell the water at a little margin to take care of themselves. Ghana Water is therefore paying for the margin of profit they make,” Mr. Martey explained.

Already, Ghana’s tourism and hospitality industry is estimated to have lost a whopping US$171million due to effects of the novel coronavirus pandemic on the industry; arguably the biggest loser. According to Minister of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, Barbara Oteng-Gyasi, an initial assessment of the loss from March to June 2020 revealed this amount, owing to the lack of operations. She also noted that a further assessment will be done to ascertain the full impact of COVID-19 on the sector.