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Can the sanitation success story of KMA be sustained?
The mission statement of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) is aimed at “keeping the city clean and healthy by the provision and delivery of effective and efficient waste collection services and programmes, and environmentally accepted disposal.”
Among others, KMA is supposed to provide conveniently situated refuse disposal points, all in the name of proper sanitation without which the health of its population is at risk.
It is in view of these that when MrOsei- Assibey- Antwi, assumed office as the Chief Executive of the KMA, in March 2017,all eyes were on him to create an enabling environment for development and healthy living.
In fact, he took office at the time Kumasi metropolis had been engulfed in filth. There were mountains of refuse at vintage points in the metropolis much to the dismay of residents who were expecting a lot from his leadership to help ensure proper sanitation of the metropolis and its environs.
Some residents had, even taken the law onto themselves to do their own thing at the expense of the beauty of the once touted “Garden City of West Africa”.
Bringing sanity to the Kumasi metropolis, would demand leadership with strong and bold decisions coupled with measures and action plans devoid of politics.
It is quite interesting to note that, the dynamism employed by the Chief Executive saw Kumasi, the second largest city in Ghana, named among the top 15 cleanest cities in Africa in 2020, according to a ranking which considers cities which prioritise cleanliness and solid waste collection.
Kumasi occupied the 12th position after Accra the national capital placed third on the list topped by Kigali, the capital of Rwanda.
The list contained the following cities : Kigali-Rwanda, Windhoek-Namibia, Accra Ghana, Gaborone – Botswana, Dar-es- Salaam-Tanzania, Johannesburg-South Africa, Port Louis Mauritius, Tunis-Tunisia, Cape Town-South Africa, Nairobi-Kenya, Libreville-Gabon, Kumasi -Ghana, Algiers-Algeria, Asmara-Eritrea, Ouagadougou -Burkina Faso, in that order.The feat was as a result of a sustained sanitation strategies by KMA.
Over the years the KMA had followed some sustainable strategies and a series of activities in the area of solid waste collection including the provision of the door-to-door and communal waste collection services.
Defending the ranking, MrAssibey-Antwi said the KMA took steps to regularise the operations of tricycles (Aboboyaa) to further improve solid waste collection within the metropolis by identifying these service providers through colours and registering them with serial numbers to ensure the effective use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) at all times and to ensure that all tricycles filled with waste were covered with nets to avoid spillage.
His leadership style has brought improvement also in the private sector participation by regularising the solid waste collection contracts and procuring solid waste containers to be placed at the communal collection sites to maintain its position on the continent.
A number of communal collection sites were improved through the provision of skip pads with roofing under the partnership with private waste companies in the provision of trucks and bins to enable the Assembly carry out its house-to-house refuse collection.
In line with the President’s vision of making Ghana clean and the Assembly’s own mandate of providing a conducive environment for the inhabitants and businesses, the Assibey-Antwi led administration launched the, “Keep Kumasi Clean and Green Project”, with the aim of restoring Kumasi to its past glory of “Garden City”.
The project saw the planting of hundreds of seedlings of different species at various locations and the installation of hundreds of bins at vantage points within the Central Business District.
To power the project, the Assembly received DAF refuse compaction truck, 40ft ford compaction truck, two Pick-ups, 10 tricycles and five tricycles donated by VIP Bus Company Limited and Zoomlion Ghana Limited to support the street sweeping and drain cleaning .
Recognising that effective waste management does not only entail storage, collection and transportation of waste but also providing the appropriate place for proper disposal or reuse of the waste materials, KMA under the leadership of MrAssibey- Antwi, single handedly managed the Landfill when the Contractor, J. Stanley Owusu Limited vacated the site due to non-payment by devising a means of ensuring that things were properly managed within limited resources by procuring a landfill dozer and communal containers under the Ghana Urban Management Pilot Project.
It was as a result of the measures effectively put in place that the KMA was, in 2019, adjudged the best Liquid Waste Management Strategy in Ghana, in a Sanitation Challenge or competition organised by the Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources, with support from foreign partners which about 139 other Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) across the country participated.
The remarkable feat came with an award of 400,000.00 Pounds Sterling in a competition which was geared towards bringing transformational change to the city.
With financial support from the Sanitation Challenge for Ghana, the KMA implemented a number of projects and programmes to improve liquid waste management in the metropolis.
These include improving Water,Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) in four public schools in the construction of four 10-seater gender sensitive, disability friendly institutional water closet toilets with mechanised borehole and overhead tanks for four schools namely, Amankwatia, Anyaano, Bantama State Boys and St. Cyprians M/A Cluster of Schools.
The project strengthened the enforcement of sanitation bye-laws and provision of logistical support, procurement and distribution of 15 motorbikes to all the Sub-Metro Environmental Health and Sanitation Units to facilitate their movements to the communities.
Under this package, the Assembly improved the Liquid Waste Stabilisation Pond at the Oti Landfill Site through the desilting of ponds and storm drains, construction of concrete platform and headworks for direct discharge, installation of coupling hoses and gravelling of kilometre haul area to the site.
Additionally, the Assembly constructed a one kilometre fence wall around the AsafoCentralised Sewer System to halt encroachment by slum dwellers and auto-mechanics.
There is no doubt that waste management that remained the greatest headache of the Assembly, has now been reduced to the barest minimum and the rate at which the citizenry flouted environmental-sanitation bye-laws, has also gone down.
A close view of the sanitation success story of the Assibey- Antwi led KMA can be underlined by the organisation of periodic health education programmes in churches, schools, lorry terminals, mosques, radio stations and routine house-to-house inspections through the Environmental Health and Sanitation Unit of the Assembly.
It is, therefore, very important for the sustainability of the sanitation success story as Kumasi desreves to be clean and healthy. Whoever takes over should bear in mind the improvement of sanitation in the metropolis.
For cleanliness, they say, is next to Godliness; and Kumasi deserves the best.
By Kingsley E. Hope.
THE state of feeling rejected, could be a terrifying experience especially for those who have become used to fame. If not properly addressed, it could lead to depression and the consequences, could be disastrous.
When you are on top of your game in whatever profession you find yourself such that you become famous, a lot of people try to associate with you. The phone never ceases to ring and one is tempted to feel loved and very important.
When a disaster strikes and the fame or the money which was the source of the attraction fades away, the circle of friends and fans begin to shrink and the phone will start to stop ringing until the call stops voting completely.
You will be shocked at how people you considered friends, will no longer be calling you or pay casual visits as they used to. You will begin to notice that messages you leave after calling them and not getting a response are not replied to and that is when you begin to know who your true friends are.
One of the most popular movie stars was an actress called Sharon Stone. In an interview with one of the media houses that was published, she spoke about how people who should have come around to encourage her in her moment of depression, shunned her. The calls stopped coming.
This is what the Bible admonishes that the arm of flesh will fail you and therefore we should put our trust in God. It could be a very frightening experience and can easily lead to depression.
Human nature being what it is, people will want to get close if things are okay. Everybody wants to associate themselves with interesting things, famous people, rich people etc for mainly selfish reasons.
We need to develop the habit of putting our trust in God and relying less on human beings. The lesson we have to take along in life is that, no one marries his or her enemy so how come people who took vows that they will love each other become so hostile to each other that they want to go their separate ways in life? Such is the reality of life.
It is therefore prudent for people to recognise that, life is full of uncertainties and so there is the need to prepare your mind for uncertainties so that when they occur, they do not disorganise your mental sanity.
A lot of people have experienced situations where people who they could have sworn will never betray their trust have disappointed them when they were through challenging moments.
If there is one thing famous people should desire, it should be the ability to identify who are true friends are. Countless stories abound regarding incidence of celebrities who have lost their shine and their wives divorcing them soon after.
It is sometimes useful as a famous or rich person to sign a prenuptial agreement before marriage to safeguard or protect yourself from any future unpleasant surprises.
People can be very pretentious these days, it goes both ways. There is this real life story where a man married a divorced wealthy woman and convinced her to sell her house so they could build a new one together, with the excuse that people are gossiping that he is being housed by a woman.
The woman agreed and they put up a new building. After a few years the man asked for a divorce, only for the woman to realise that the land on which the building was situated, was bought in the man’s name.
This can drive a person insane, if you are not mentally tough and this happens to you. When people hear that you are homeless, a lot of your so-called friends will stop calling, so that you do not become a burden on them.
By Laud Kissi-Mensah
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‘But, er …. I don’t even know your name’.
‘Paul. Paul Allotey. I’m Sarah, by the way. Paul, why don’t you leave me here, since this is the last important thing I’m doing today’.
‘Okay. Now Sarah. I was just thinking. You will be here at the cafe for about an hour. By then it will be about twelve thirty. Then, you would be thinking of buying yourself some lunch, to eat here or to take home. So if you would please allow me, I will take you to one of the nicest eating places in town, and after you have sorted that one out, then I can drop you home. Just that one errand, then I won’t bother you again’.
‘You are not bothering me at all. You are being very kind to me. And I just realised you are a mind reader too. The last item on my agenda was lunch’.
‘I’m so glad I appeared at your doorstep, just in time’.
‘Okay. Now Paul, since you say the cafe is a comfortable place, let’s go in together, and you can do your work while I get my application done’.
‘Okay, Sarah. Thanks. Let’s go’.
We got back in the car at eleven forty-five.
‘So where are we going, Paul?’
‘To Royalty restaurant. It’s a twenty minute drive away’.
‘So, do you enjoy your job?’
‘Most certainly. I won’t change it, not even to be President. And am I right to say that you are preparing to enter the university?’
‘That’s my plan. I hope it works’.
‘It will, if you are determined, and disciplined. You look very much like a disciplined person’.
‘Thank you very much’.
We arrived at Royalty in twenty-five minutes, ‘You are joining me for lunch, Paul’.
‘Thanks for the honour, Sarah. But the bill is on me’.
‘Aren’t you taking on too much for one day?’
‘I never do anything that is bigger than me, Sarah’.
Over the next hour and a half, we discussed fashion, local and international politics, and sports, as we ate and relaxed. Finally, he drove me to the shop.
‘I will never forget you, Paul’.
‘I’m glad to have been helpful. But if you don’t mind, I’ll say it again, your husband is extremely lucky. You are really beautiful’.
‘Thanks again. But do you mind if I call you sometime in the future?’
‘Certainly not. Let me write it here. I will not ask for your number, for obvious reasons. But I will be looking forward to hearing from you. And hopefully, I will see you next month, when I call to drop your bill’.
‘Okay Paul. See you then’. What a lovely day, I said to myself as I opened the front door. I closed the shop and got home by seven. I went straight to the bedroom, stood in the mirror and took a good look at myself. ‘You are a very beautiful woman, Sarah. Never forget that’. I will not forget that, again.
Over the next several weeks, Martin and I had very little to do with each other. In the morning he ate his breakfast and after a shabby ‘I’m going’, he left. He came home around eight at the earliest, ate his dinner and, already soaked in beer, went off to sleep.
He spent the greater part of the weekends at the club house with his friends, playing tennis and partying. My mind was focused on furthering my education, so I didn’t complain to him, and didn’t bother to inform my parents about what was happening. I had decided that I would only take action if he lifted his hand against me again. I spent my free time reading all manner of interesting stuff on the internet, and chatting with my sister on WhatsApp.
One evening, he came home at about eight, rushed to the bedroom and rushed out. An envelope, obviously containing money, dropped out of his pocket, and I picked it up and followed him. I was going to call him and give it to him, but I noticed that there was a young woman in the car, so I went back in, counted it and put it in a drawer in the hall. He came back after some ten minutes.
‘Excuse me, I dropped an envelope containing money. You must have seen it’.
‘Yes, I saw it. Actually, I followed you, and was about to call you and hand it over to you when I realised that there was a woman in the car, so I came back in. I counted it. One thousand cedis.
‘Well let me have it. I have to be going’.
‘I will let you have it if you will tell me who the woman in the car is, and why you are going to give her that amount of money’.
‘Listen, if you waste my time, I will teach you a lesson you will never forget. Give me the money now!’
‘Here’s what we will do, Martin. I know you will give money to her anyway, so I will give it to you, if you will withdraw the threat you just issued. But I want you to know that I will be taking some steps from tomorrow. Things are getting out of hand’.
‘Okay, I’m sorry I threatened you. Can you please give me the money’. I handed it over to him, and he ran out’.
The following morning, I waited for him to finish having breakfast, and told him I wanted to have a word with him urgently.
‘You better be quick. You know I’m going to work’.
‘Well, I want to inform you that I will inform my parents, and your parents, about the situation in this house. As I said yesterday, things are getting out of hand. You spend most of your time drinking. You get drunk every evening, and through the weekend. And you are also spending your time and money on a prostitute’.
‘How dare you? One more stupid word from you …’
‘Am I lying, Martin? You have just started life, yet you are behaving like a rich, elderly man who has already seen his children through university, and can afford a life of fun. As I said, I’m going to inform our parents. Maybe your parents can straighten you out before it is too late’.
‘Look, we can talk this evening. It’s nothing like what you are saying’. He walked away, shocked.
That evening, I was expecting to have a meaningful discussion with him, but his mother called early in the evening to offer me some ‘advice’. Her son had called to say that certain developments at home were disturbing him so much that they were beginning to affect his work.
And, ‘as a loving mother to her daughter’, she was advising me to submit to my husband, and support him in prayer, and not ‘drive him from home’. Men would always be men, and she was telling me ‘from experience’ that no matter how much time Martin stayed away from home, he would always come home to me.
She had been a young wife before, so she understood the challenges I was facing. So I could be assured that if I followed her advice, all would be well. And, of course, she didn’t allow me to tell my side of the story.
Martin came home very late, and very drunk. And from the next morning, he carried on as before. With some hesitation, I called my dad and told him all that had gone on.
‘Well, my daughter. I’m not going to say “I told you so”. I was only trying to protect you. So here’s what we’ll do. Continue doing the best you can, and try not to give him any excuse to harm you, but if things continue to deteriorate, I will take you back.
A couple of days later, my cousin Dinah arrived in Accra from Brussels, having completed her medical course. With Martin’s agreement, I went to Koforidua and spent a couple of days. I spent most of the time chatting about her experiences in the US, but we also discussed my relationship with Martin, and she endorsed Dad’s decision to take action if Martin’s behaviour did not change after two weeks Elaine informed Mom and Dad. We endorsed Dad’s decision to take action if there was no change in two weeks.
Dinah returned with me to Takoradi. Her plan was to spend a couple of weeks, and return to Accra to be posted. I called Paul Allotey, and asked if he would meet her for lunch and, if possible, show her some interesting spots. Delighted, he suggested that we meet at Royalty the next day.
I told Martin about it, to remove any possibility of future disagreement over ‘going out with men’.
‘It’s fine with me’, he said, ‘if, of all the people who could show your sister round this town, you chose a borla man. Doesn’t that indicate the kind of person you are?’
‘ First of all, Martin’, I’ve spoken to him a few times, and he comes across as a decent guy, so I think it is rather unfortunate that you are writing him off when you don’t know him’.
By Ekow de Heer
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