Mr Stephen Adom, the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for Ho, has reaffirmed the Assembly’s commitment to maintaining a clean environment and sustaining the city’s enviable tag as the “Oxygen City.”
Speaking at the launch of the revived clean-up exercise in Ho, Mr Adom said the initiative was not only in line with the President’s vision of a clean Ghana, but also timely, as the municipality prepared to welcome visitors for the Asogli Te Za (Yam Festival).
He noted that Ho’s dual role as both the capital of the Volta Region and the Ho municipal capital, demanded greater responsibility in ensuring cleanliness, beauty, and order.
Mr Lawrence Senya, the Ho Municipal Environmental Health Officer, described the exercise as the beginning of a renewed campaign to restore the culture of communal clean-ups and beautification.
“Today’s turnout has been massive, with schools, institutions, organisations, and community groups all taking part. Though not 100 per cent of the participation we anticipated, we are satisfied with the progress made,” he told the Ghana News Agency (GNA).
He announced that the Ho municipality has resolved to hold its clean-up exercises on the first Friday of every month, ahead of the National Sanitation Day.
This decision, he said, was to better align with the region’s cultural calendar and ensure consistency.
Mr Senya, however, reminded residents that sanitation was a daily civic responsibility and not limited to official clean-up days.
He cautioned against apathy, noting that some shop owners either stayed indoors or closed their shops without actively participating.
Chiefs and assembly members, he said, were empowered by law to sanction defaulters, and the Assembly was prepared to support enforcement through spot fines and, if necessary, court action.
He expressed satisfaction with the improvements observed after the exercise: “Our streets are already looking cleaner and more beautiful. Ho is home to beautiful people, and we must maintain that image through discipline and monthly action.”
The maiden exercise drew participation from basic and second-cycle schools, the NCCE, market women, civil society organisations, and individuals, who gathered at vantage points, markets, and key streets across the municipality to desilt drains, sweep public spaces, and clear refuse.
Some participants who spoke with the GNA said they were proud to contribute to the programme and encouraged others to join subsequent exercises.
Mr Senya assured that those who defaulted would be dealt with according to the law, while commending those who actively took part for setting the tone for a successful relaunch of Ho’s monthly sanitation drive.
GNA
