Yilo krobo: Mr. Francis Akumatey, the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) of Yilo Krobo, has launched an 'Operation Clean Your Frontage' drive to enforce sanitation bylaws in Somanya. He urged personal responsibility and warned of penalties for non-compliance. The MCE rolled out the sanitation enforcement initiative to keep Somanya, the municipal capital, and its surrounding communities clean. He believes residents and businesses must take charge of their immediate environment.
According to Ghana News Agency, the campaign, dubbed 'Operation Clean Your Frontage,' brings together assembly members, assembly staff, environmental health officers, and other stakeholders to enforce hygiene standards across the municipality and ensure compliance with existing bylaws. In an interview with the agency, Mr. Akumatey emphasized that residents should not wait for periodic national clean-up exercises to tidy their surroundings but must adopt daily housekeeping practices at home and at work.
Mr. Akumatey expressed concern over the indiscriminate disposal of wastewater, particularly from bathrooms and hairdressing salons, into open drains. He noted that such practices degraded neighborhoods and heightened public-health risks. An ultimatum has been issued to residents and businesses to construct soakaways to curb pollution and free drains. Those who fail to comply will face legal consequences.
Health inspectors have been empowered during recent national sanitation day exercises at Adjikpo and Nkurakan to summon offenders who violated sanitation bylaws. Mr. Akumatey indicated that education and sensitization would continue alongside enforcement to secure lasting behavior change. The MCE tasked the assemblyman for Adjikpo to lead by example, asserting that public office holders should meet the same standards expected of households and enterprises.
Mr. Akumatey cited Agavenya in Somanya as a priority hotspot requiring urgent action due to persistent wastewater overflows that had created an unhealthy environment for residents and businesses. He reminded residents that cleanliness is a shared civic duty and urged households, traders, and institutions to help prevent diseases such as cholera, typhoid, and malaria by keeping premises and drains clean, properly disposing of wastewater, and adhering to municipal directives.
The Yilo Krobo Municipal Assembly's push places enforcement at the center of service delivery, echoing national policy that mandates Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies to implement sanitation bylaws and prioritize public health. The emphasis on soakaways, drain clearing, and routine housekeeping aligns with government sanitation objectives that pair community education with penalties for non-compliance and complements periodic national clean-up exercises by shifting focus to continuous, community-led upkeep.
Health officials have noted that the approach also reflects broader public-health goals to reduce vector-borne and water-related diseases through environmental hygiene and drainage management. The Yilo Krobo Municipal Assembly urged all residents, businesses, and institutions to comply with sanitation regulations, construct soakaways, and join hands to keep the municipality clean.
