He blamed the dirty surroundings on security personnel stationed at the washing bay who allowed residents in the area to throw garbage into the gutters.

Last month, the Chief Executive Officer of KMA warned that shops that stayed open while clean-up activities were going on would be locked up and the owners prosecuted.

Mr Bonsu said he had taken the latest incident seriously because ever since the beginning of the National Sanitation Day exercise, a number of shops at Asafo and other places in the city had shown little interest in the activity. Under the circumstances, he said the KMA was determined to do everything to whip up interest in the exercise.

The latest National Sanitation Day exercise in Kumasi had residents clean many areas in the city, including the Aboabo station at Alabar, the Kumasi Central Market and the Kejetia Bus Terminal.