Assembly calls for attitudinal change

…As Madina clears filth ahead of Indece Day       

Time for all to get involved in clearing a heap of rubbish
Pix: By Frederick Asiamah

Scores of people on Saturday abandoned trading and other activities to join in a clean-up exercise undertaken in the Madina Township under the auspices of the La-Nkwatanang Madina Municipal Assembly (LA-NMMA).

Joseph Quacoe, Municipal Environmental Health Officer, said the exercise was part of national preparations toward the commemoration of the 57^th Independence Day anniversary of Ghana, which comes off on Thursday March 6, 2014.

According to him, the exercise was carried out in the entire municipality but there was emphasis on environmental sanitation “flash points” including the Zongo-Social Welfare road, the Madina Number 1 Cluster of Schools (venue for the municipal Independence Day parade), lorry parks and markets.

Staff of the Municipal Assembly joined volunteers, waste management service providers, security personnel and traders to carry out the exercise in the early hours of the day. They desilted drains, cleared debris from decongested areas and loaded waste trucks which carted the filth away for dumping.

In an interview, Mr Quacoe gave assurance that the assembly would strive to maintain a clean environment in the municipality but called for a change in attitudes. “Madina is one of the fastest growing communities and the influx of people leads to human activity that generates waste. It is becoming a challenge to us but all the same we are doing our best,” he said. The key thing, however, “is attitudinal change,” he added.

At the Madina Market Complex, Rebecca Larbi, who has been trading at the market for six years, was happy to join in the exercise because choked gutters created unpleasant conditions, including emitting disgusting odour.

Mr Franklin Anku, Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for LA-NMMA, also identified attitudinal change as catalyst for sustainable sanitation. He was optimistic that the assembly can achieve remarkable results through education.

The problem “is attitudinal,” he acknowledged, adding, “You also agree with me that it [changing attitudes] is not an event; it’s a process because it is with education that we can change overtime. It is about people getting to understand what exactly we want to do, where we want to go from here.”

Mr Franklin Anku, MCE for LANMMA, flanked by Alhaji Saaka Dramani, Municipal Coordinating Director (L) and Mr Joseph Quacoe, Municipal Environmental Health Officer (R) as he monitored the exercise. Pix: Frederick Asiamah

In a related development, the Ga East Municipal Assembly (GEMA) has also cleared heaps of solid waste and bushes within and around the Dome Market. Staff of GEMA, Dome Zonal Council, and Waste Management companies, as well as, traders and personnel of the Ghana Police Service were involved in the exercise.

Mr John Kwao Sackey, Municipal Chief Executive, explained the rationale for the focus on the market. “The Market is the main centre where we all come to buy…What we have done is to clear this area and put it under serious watch so that we don’t create a clean environment somewhere and then the radius of the market will have an unclean environment.”

Addressing the issue of enforcement of environmental sanitation regulations, Supt. Victoria Yamoah, Kwabenya District Police Commander, identified inter-organisational collaboration as a major catalyst for law enforcement. Therefore, “We are planning to liaise with the environmental health officers so that we put signboards warning against environmental offences. Now they will have to ensure that they place people there to enforce the regulations and arrest culprits.”