General News of Wednesday, 9 August 2017
Source: Myjoyonline.com
2017-08-09
file photo
Judges assigned to the Ashiedu Keteke court to adjudicate sanitation cases have left the court because the environment is dangerous to their health.
Chief Executive Officer of Accra Metropolitan Assembly, Mohammed Adjei Sowah who made the revelation said unauthorized operations of some persons in a former abattoir close by are also responsible for the insanitary conditions.
Mohammed Adjei Sowah said the situation is impeding the Assembly’s efforts at ensuring the swift enforcement of the sanitation laws.
The Assembly, which has five of such courts scattered across the capital to prosecute cases on sanitation, now has to make do with four, due to the decision of the judges not to operate at the Ashiedu Keteke court, Mr. Adjei stated on the Super Morning Show on Joy FM, Wednesday.
Some people still slaughter livestock for sale at the former abattoir despite the relocation of the slaughterhouse to a new site along the Tema motorway over a decade ago.
The resulting smoke, which health experts warn, can cause a variety of health effects, including respiratory irritation and shortness of breath.
Smoke can worsen medical conditions such as asthma and heart disease. Frequent exposure to smoke for brief periods may also cause long-term health effects.
Describing the situation as “quite complicated,” Mr. Adjei said his outfit is determined urgently resolve it.
“We are not in normal times when it comes to sanitation matters and you need a special court with a special attention to deal with such cases,” he stressed.
Besides the unsanitary condition at the Ashiedu Keteke court, the Judicial Service is also not pleased with the conditions at most of the courts, which the Mayor said is in awful states.
“I can also tell you that most of the courts are in a very deplorable state [and] the judges; the judicial service is not excited about it,” the Accra Mayor told sit-in host, Nhyira Addo.
He said renovation works are ongoing at some of the courts while efforts are being made to speed up construction of a new one at the Nkrumah Circle “so that in the enforcement stage, you know that you have people who are going to do the enforcement”.
The Mayor also called for a debate over fines imposed on persons found guilty saying what the courts currently prescribe, “are not deterrent enough”.
