Queen Mother of Mepe, Mamaga Adzo Srako IV, has censured the media for reporting comments president Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo made earlier this week, during a visit to commiserate with flood victims, out of context.
She stated in an interview that the president’s comments to the effect that he does not get votes from people in the region was at best a little joke which the media unduly dwelt on.
She lamented that it was rather unfortunate that the media chose to major on the minors and eventually ended up deflecting from the plight of the suffering people who are facing a humanitarian crisis because of flooding.
“The president made promises that immediately he’ll see to us, and in the long term he’ll see to us. However, the little joke the president told, that if it were because of votes, he would not have come here, has rather become the news,” she lamented.
“That’s what you [the media] are circulating instead of the talks about the disaster that has befallen us. You chose to rather make a big deal out of the harmless joke by the president,” she added.
“We were not pleased with you journalists,” she declared.
On the issue of the floods and possible implications in the short to medium term, she expressed fear of a disease outbreak if immediate steps are not taken on a number of conditions.
“The flood waters are becoming dark, it’s becoming black, it’s becoming thick, it’s giving off a bad smell. This means it is seriously contaminated, harbouring disease and sickness.
“If we keep crossing these waters, we’ll be overtaken by diseases we cannot contain,” she warned.
She informed the media that “this morning, we spoke to the District Chief Executive – we need immediate action”.
Th the view of the Mepe Queen Mother: “either we get a road that will take us to the camp, as they barricade the river, or they evacuate the people back into town, so that they won’t have to be crossing all those waters again.”