The Volta Regional Minister, Dr Archibald Letsa, has urged municipal and district assemblies to review their bye-laws, in line with current trends, gazette and enforce them to the letter. He said with the increase in population, outmoded bye-laws on sanitation in some assemblies in the region had contributed to poor attitudes towards sanitation, leading to insanitary conditions.
“The existence of bye-laws enhances the implementation of assembly decisions, including sanitary cases. Individuals in some communities are hiding behind the non-existence of bye-laws that reflect modern situations to degrade the environment with impunity.
“I wish, therefore, to urge the management of municipal and district assemblies to create the necessary environment to ensure that bye-laws are reviewed, gazetted and enforced,” Dr Letsa said.
In a keynote address at the Graphic/Zoomlion Regional Sanitation Stakeholders’ Dialogue in Ho last Friday, the regional minister said it was unacceptable for a community or country to be tagged unclean.
“It is, indeed, unacceptable to be considered an ‘unclean’ community or country. This is why it is imperative for all of us to work together to ensure good sanitation in our communities and country,” he stressed.
Attitudinal change
Dr Letsa said in spite of many initiatives and the attendant financial investment by successive governments in the sanitation sector, the sanitation challenge had kept increasing.
The minister said with the increase in solid and liquid waste generation in Ho, for instance, there was the need to focus on attitudinal change.
Enforcement
As part efforts to ensure good sanitation, Dr Letsa said, 18 environmental health officers from all assemblies in the region recently benefited from training for prosecutors, adding that the region was looking forward to the enforcement of public health laws.
He commended the initiative by the Graphic Communications Group Ltd (GCGL) and Zoomlion to create awareness of sanitation and expressed optimism that it would further strengthen collaboration with other stakeholders “and help bring to reality my dream of making the region the cleanest”.
Chiefs in front
The President of the Volta Regional House of Chiefs, Togbe Tepre Hodo IV, who chaired the event, said traditional leaders should be placed at the forefront of the sanitation fight, given the huge influence they wielded in communities.
He said traditional leaders used to be central figures in ensuring adherence to rules and bye-laws on sanitation.
Togbe Hodo said communal labour, which used to be a key practice for keeping the environment clean, was no longer a prominent feature in many communities.
Togbe Hodo, who is the Paramount Chief of the Anfoega Traditional Area, urged chiefs to take a closer look at provisions in the Chieftaincy Act, 2008 (Act 759) and apply the requisite sanctions for their people to sit up.
“Luckily for us, the Chieftaincy Act has empowered chiefs to use such a tool to make sure that our communities are clean,” he said.
He said issues concerning basic sanitation were continuous and should be spearheaded by the citizenry, not the government, since they had more than enough capacity to ensure that their surroundings were clean.
“It is only after we have done the basic that we can call on the government. The government cannot be everywhere at every time. Let us endeavour to keep sanitation as a normal part of our existence as human beings,” Togbe Hedo stated.
He said just as books such as ‘Courtesy for Boys and Girls’ had an impact on children in the past, there was the need to influence children now with education on sanitation in order to build a sound foundation and inculcate in them an awareness of cleanliness.
Truth, accuracy
The Managing Director of the GCGL, Mr Ato Afful, for his part, said the company, beyond its influence and reputation for excellence, truth and accuracy, was also committed to supporting developmental initiatives, advocacy and behavioural change in society.
He said the company forged collaborations for its brands to use their services to connect and engage their various target segments for public good.
On the stakeholders’ dialogue, Mr Afful reiterated the need for the citizenry to take environmental protection as a patriotic duty, while urging stakeholders, especially enforcement authorities, to ensure that education moved hand in hand with sanctions.
He indicated that Ho, so named “Oxygen City”, had the potential to attract huge investors if the continuous commitment was made to ensure top-notch sanitation.
“Let us continuously cultivate the culture of keeping the country and the region clean, while we encourage one another to promote a clean Ghana,” Mr Afful stated.
Background
The GCGL, with support from Zoomlion Ghana Limited, launched the “Clean Ghana Campaign” on April 28, this year.
The company has declared 2021 the Year of Sanitation to whip up interest among the citizenry to adhere to good sanitation practices.
As part of the initiative, the GCGL and Zoomlion are organising regional stakeholders’ sanitation dialogues to create top-of-mind awareness of sanitation and bring about behavioural change in citizens for a cleaner environment.
The dialogue is also to complement the national sanitation campaign by the Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources christened: ‘Change Your Bad Habit’.
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