Minister demands toilet facilities at Kejetia Market cells

The Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources, Mrs Cecilia Abena Dapaah, has instructed that a toilet facility be constructed within the police cells of the new Kejetia market.

She said the current design, which required inmates to be led by police officers to a designated toilet facility, was not safe and could pose sanitation challenges for inmates and security officers in the long run.

The minister, who is on a three-day working visit to Kumasi, has consequently suggested to the General Manager of the market, Mr Olympio Agbodza, to allow portions of the cells/holding areas to be converted into a toilet facility for inmates to avoid possible jailbreak.

In the metropolis, the minister was scheduled to tour facilities of the Ghana Water Company, inspect individual homes and encourage the construction of toilets in every home.

Beautification

Mrs Dapaah has also suggested the creation of a garden within the market area where both customers and traders could sit and relax for recreation.

Much as she reckoned not to have training in construction or engineering, the minister said incorporating her suggestions into facility design would help.

Toilet project

While visiting homes to inspect toilet facilities, the minister announced that the government was building 2,000 of such facilities across four metropolitan assemblies at GH¢10,000.

The beneficiary metropolitan assemblies are Kumasi, Cape Coast, Takoradi and Tamale.

The number of allotment for each of them is, however, contingent on population.

Out of the figure, the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly is to received 1,000 and the rest shared among the three assemblies on a ratio proportionate to their respective populations.