By Edward Williams
Alavanyo (V/R), Sept. 4, GNA – The Hohoe Municipal Assembly has held its September clean up exercise at Alavanyo Wudidi in the Volta region as part of efforts to keep the Municipality clean.
The Assembly sets every first Thursday of each month as a communal clean-up day or National Sanitation Day between 0600 and 1000 hours to improve sanitation in the various townships.
During the exercise, no business premises are allowed to operate between the hours except pharmaceutical or drug stores or others that offer emergency health or humanitarian services.
Mr Wisdom Kporngor, the Hohoe Municipal Coordinating Director, commended the community for engaging in the exercise and urged them to continue to ensure a clean community.
He said it was an offence not to participate in the exercise, and anyone found culpable would be arraigned before the court.
Mr Kporngor said it came to the attention of the Assembly that there was an ongoing illegal felling of trees in a forest reserve in the enclave by some unknown individuals, which he described as illegal and unacceptable.
He said any activity to fell a tree required an approval from the Forestry Commission and urged the community members to follow the appropriate steps in such regard.
Togbe Kokloko Ananze XIII, Hohoe Municipal Director, Environmental Protection Authority (EPA), said indiscriminate felling of trees must be avoided because such activities degraded the environment and came back to affect humanity.
He said tree planting should be encouraged to mitigate the effects of climate change while noting that there were legal implications for illegal felling of trees.
Mr Divine Abotsi, Hohoe Municipal Environmental Health Analyst, urged the community to take care of their animals and not let them stray to destroy the properties of their neighbours.
He reminded food and drink vendors to ensure that they registered in the ongoing health screening in the Municipality because anyone who defaulted was liable.
DO III Bismark Hosu-Porbley, Hohoe Municipal Fire Commander for the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS), urged the residents not to overfill their gas cylinders and not connect their gas regulators as soon as they came back from filling them.
He advised them to engage the services of certified electricians, avoid illegal connections, and desist from plugging heaters, microwaves, kettles to extension boards but directly to the sockets.
Togbe Fiaya VI, Divisional Chief of Alavanyo Wudidi, expressed gratitude to the Assembly for bringing the exercise to the community while thanking the subjects for turning out and continuing to do so always.
He called for Assembly’s support in the community’s sanitation efforts.
GNA
Edited by Maxwell Awumah/Linda Asante Agyei
Reporter: Edward Williams