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Stop use of car tyres for smoking meat – Minister orders MMDAs

The Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources, Cecilia Abena Dapaah has directed veterinary officers of the various Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to stop slaughter slabs from smoking meat with car tyres.

She said the practice was a public health threat which required regular inspection and strict enforcement of sanitation and environment laws to stop it.

“We’ve heard about cancer. These practices are the reason it is becoming a common disease in Ghana. We cannot accept that while we’re helping your business by purchasing your meat, you endanger us by serving us meat smoked with a hazardous substance. The Assemblies must bring this to a halt,” she added.

The Minister was speaking in Accra yesterday when she and other officials of the Ministry undertook sanitation inspection in three MMDAs in the Greater Accra Region.

Ablekuma Central Ablekuma North and Ablekuma West Municipal assemblies were covered during the exercise.

At Ablekuma Central, Madam Cecilia tasked the assembly to re-engineer the waste site at Sodom and Gomorrah and charge user fees which could be used to properly manage the site.

“People should not be allowed to just dump anything they consider waste without paying for it. The Assembly needs money to manage the site and we can get that if we charge user fees. This will then create another revenue generation stream for the Assembly and ensure proper management of waste,” she stated.

The Minister directed the Environmental and Sanitation Unit of the Assembly to summon and prosecute offenders of sanitation laws to deter others from doing same.

In an interaction with operators of the slaughter slab next to the waste site, she advised them to prioritise hygiene and keep clean conditions to prevent contamination of the meat.

She however cautioned that the ministry would be compelled to close down the slaughter slab and prosecute them if they continue to disregard sanitation directives and laws.

 The team further interacted with market women at the Mallam market and transport operators at the Odorkor Main Lorry Station, all in Ablekuma North Municipality and inspected some sanitation works within the Ablekuma West Municipality.

Although more work has to be done in realising the agenda to make Accra the cleanest city in Africa, Madam Dapaah said, the Ministry was satisfied with the cooperation and various initiatives by the MMDAs, market women and other groups toward creating hygienic conditions in their respective locations.

Meanwhile, Cabinet, she stated, has given approval to the plan to re-engineer the Oti and Kpong landfill sites in Kumasi and Kpone in the Greater Accra Region respectively adding that details of the plan would be communicated soon.

As part of promoting good sanitation, Chief Executive of Ablekuma North Municipal Assembly, Kofi Ofori, said his outfit ensured mandatory dustbins for all shop owners and strictly enforced sanitation laws.

Echoing similar sentiment, Mariama Amui Karley and George Bray, Chief Executives of Ablekuma Central and Ablekuma West Municipal Assemblies, said, the Assemblies have intensified prosecution of offenders of sanitation laws and appealed for support from the public toward improving proper hygiene.

BY CLAUDE NYARKO ADAMS

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