Accra, Jan. 26, GNA – Some traders at the Makola Market, Accra, have appealed to the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) for waste containers to curb insanitary conditions in parts of the Market.
The traders attributed poor sanitation in the Market to lack of waste containers leading to indiscriminate disposal of waste.
Piles of refuse were seen at different locations in the Market when the Ghana News Agency toured the Central Business District on Tuesday.
Mr Rahim Abubakar, a shoe seller at the Market, expressed worry about the situation, saying, “before, there was a container for waste collection, but it has been taken away…”
He said the situation was not only inconveniencing traders and affecting trading activities, but the tons of garbage in parts of the Market due to the lack of a waste container was also a public health concern.
Madam Araba Pentsiwa, also a trader, said she now hawked in the streets because of the insanitary condition, especially at where she used to sell.
“I hawk in traffic now and around the market because I can’t sit in filth to sell,” she said, appealing to the Assembly to, as a matter of urgency, rid the area of filth by providing them with a waste container.
Mrs Monica Osei, another trader, whose goods were near a heap of rubbish, said she had lost many clients due to the poor sanitation in the area.
Government in October last year launched “Operation Clean Your Frontage,” and expects to deploy over 3,500 members of a taskforce to enforce sanitation by-laws.
The campaign is to make it obligatory for all individuals and corporates to be responsible for the cleaning and greening of their immediate surroundings.
The necessary by-laws have been passed and gazetted by the 29 Assemblies in the Greater Accra Region to enable the lawful implementation of the initiative.
GNA