Open defecation crackdown: 7 jailed after failing to pay GH¢600 fine
The Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) Sanitation Court has convicted eight persons for engaging in open defecation in parts of Accra, with seven of them remanded into prison custody after failing to pay a fine of 50 penalty units, equivalent to GH¢600.
The seven remanded are Samuel Aryeequaye, Evans Derry, Kwesi Milla, Richard Quintin Coffie, Seidu Aminu, Awuaaba Michael and Quarcoo Ernest.
An eighth offender, Raphael Adjetey, who was also convicted for the same offence, paid the fine imposed by the court and was discharged.
The convictions follow a special enforcement exercise carried out by Environmental Health Officers of the AMA as part of intensified efforts to tackle unsanitary practices in the capital.
Speaking after the court proceedings, the Head of Public Affairs at the AMA, Mr Gilbert Nii Ankrah, stated that the offenders were arrested during a night-time operation led by the Head of the Environmental Health Department, Madam Florence Kuukyi.
He said the arrests were made at Bubuashie, Jamestown and Chorkor as the Assembly stepped up enforcement of sanitation regulations across the metropolis.
According to him, the AMA Environmental Health Department had commenced 24-hour operations to ensure strict compliance with sanitation by-laws, adding that officers had sustained day-and-night monitoring to curb public nuisance and safeguard public health.
He urged residents to desist from open defecation and to make use of approved sanitary facilities, warning that the Assembly would continue arrests and prosecutions to deter offenders and promote a cleaner city.
The AMA has in recent months intensified its sanitation drive, signalling a renewed determination to enforce by-laws and restore environmental discipline in Accra.
