Popular Ghanaian journalist Afia Pokuaa, also known as Vim Lady, has come out to defend former Greater Accra Regional Minister, Henry Quartey, over his past efforts to prevent flooding in Accra.
In a post on her Facebook page on Thursday, 22nd May, 2025, Afia Pokuaa said that many Ghanaians misunderstood Quartey’s work when he was in office, but recent events have proven that he was right all along.
When Henry Quartey was the regional minister under the NPP government, he led a campaign to clean up Accra and prevent flooding. He visited flood-prone areas and advised residents to move their belongings to safer places. He also went to market areas to remove traders who had set up their stalls on roads and near gutters, causing blockages and making it difficult for water to flow freely.
However, many people, especially members of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), criticized his actions. Some traders and residents were angry and even threatened to vote against the NPP because they felt the removals were unfair. NDC leaders promised that if they came into power, they would not treat the people the same way.
Now that the NDC is back in power under President John Dramani Mahama, the new Greater Accra Regional Minister, Linda Ocloo, has started a similar decongestion exercise in the region. This has led to people realizing that what Henry Quartey was doing was necessary to help prevent flooding.
After a heavy downpour recently, several parts of Accra got flooded, leading to the death of three people and the destruction of many homes. Afia Pokuaa reacted to the situation by posting on social media, “Politics eh! If we had not politicized Henry Quartey’s cleanup, we would’ve avoided this flooding.”
