MCE ANGRY WITH PEOPLE WHO FLOUT SANITATION REGULATIONS (PAGE 23)

THE Cape Coast Metropolitan Chief Executive (MCE), Madam Mercy Arhin, has deplored the way sanitation regulations in the metropolis are flouted with impunity by some residents.
She said the situation had contributed to the heavy pollution and silting of the Fosu Lagoon, as well as choked drains and poor sanitary conditions in some parts of the metropolis.
Madam Arhin, therefore, called on residents of the metropolis to ensure good sanitation and proper hygienic practices to rid the metropolis of filth to boost tourism and healthy lives.
She also urged them to keep the beaches clean and be bold to challenge people who flouted sanitation regulations.
Addressing a capacity-building workshop for opinion leaders of Anaafo in Cape Coast, Madam Arhin said it had become common practice for the residents to dump garbage at unauthorised places, including open drains, resulting in the spread of diseases.
The project is being supported by the German Development Service, in collaboration with Youth Watch, Ghana, the Central Regional Development Commission and the Cape Coast Metropolitan Assembly.
The Metropolitan Director of the Ghana Health Service, Dr Joseph Teye Nuertey, said 632 cases of cholera were reported in the metropolis in 2006, with 28 deaths, adding that there was no outbreak of the disease in 2007.
He said three cases of yellow fever were reported in 2005, with none being recorded in 2006 and 2007, while 60,113 cases of malaria were recorded in 2005, 61,764 in 2006 and 61,077 in 2007.
He stated that 13 elephantiasis cases were recorded in 2005, 23 in 2006 and 36 in 2007.
Dr Nuertey called on the assembly to enact and enforce its bye-laws on sanitation for improved and healthy lives.
Messrs Francis Kyeremeh and Christopher Mensah, Executive Director Programme and Director, respectively, of Youth Watch Ghana, said a recent UNICEF/WTO joint monitoring report on sanitation ranked the country as one of the dirtiest in West Africa.
They, therefore, called for concerted efforts to address the situation.