Humans Adopt Gutter As Home �

Though interventions are being made by government and other stakeholders on health to control the cholera outbreak and other contagious diseases, some citizens have, due to abject poverty, adopted a gutter as their place of abode. The abode has been christened by the residents as �air condition� located opposite the Nima police station. Tenants there claim they do not have the wherewithal to hire a decent home to live. They also claim they do not have the resources to pay water and light bills and therefore prefer to live in the gutter. Scenes the DAILY HERITAGE�S lenses captured were horrifying as some of the tenants were found defecating into the drains, while others were taking their bath and sleeping there. The paper further observed that the stretch of the gutter behind the former offices of Societe General, Ring Road branch which are directly opposite the Nima Police Station have become a safe den for criminals who after embarking on operations take shelter under the bridge with their accomplices. Breathing in the area is very difficult due to the stench that emanates from the activities of the tenants, some of who smoke wee and defecate indiscriminately in the area where they sleep. The paper can also confirm that food vendors in the area also rely on a very dirty and unhealthy source of water from the gutter to prepare food for sale. A resident who lives in the area, Eric Nortey told the paper that late in the day, a lot of people queue there to have their bath, a development he said sometimes leads to knife-pulling and fight among the criminals. Mr. Nortey said the most dangerous thing is that the gutter has become a �Lion�s Den� for criminals who attack and rob innocent people in the area. He said they take to their heels soon after and later hide under the gutter. A police officer at the Nima Police Station who spoke to the paper on condition of anonymity said several operations have been carried out to get rid of the people, but all have proven futile. The police officer said the situation requires police reinforcement to permanently stop the practice. One of the residents the paper spotted defecating in the gutter, Alhassan Gariba, emphatically told the paper that he feels more comfortable using the gutter instead of a toilet facility. He also described the practice of defecation as having free �air conditioner.� He also noted that because there is no toilet where he lives, he cannot afford the 50Gp they charge in other areas.