Fruitful Living
Sanitation, Hygiene, and the Morality of Public Space: Reclaiming Ghana’s Civic Virtue Through Faith and Policy (Part III)
C. The Hypocrisy of Private Purity
A peculiar Ghanaian paradox persists: homes may gleam while streets fester in waste. This dual morality—private cleanliness coexisting with public neglect—reveals a fractured civic conscience. The Prophet (peace be upon him) condemned hypocrisy in all forms:
“The signs of a hypocrite are three: when he speaks, he lies; when he promises, he breaks it; and when he is entrusted, he betrays the trust.” (Sahih Bukhari, 33)
To claim faith while ignoring public hygiene is a moral contradiction. True purity must be seamless within and without—private and public.
IV. Policy, Governance, and the Enforcement Gap
While faith and moral education are foundational, institutional frameworks remain crucial. Ghana’s repeated sanitation failures reflect systemic governance lapses. The Qur’an advocates justice and order in leadership:
“Indeed, Allah commands you to render trusts to whom they are due and when you judge between people to judge with justice.” (Qur’an 4:58)
The implementation gap between policy and practice reveals both administrative weakness and civic apathy.
A. The Limitations of Top-Down Policy
Policies such as the National Sanitation Day were driven by political symbolism rather than sustained behavioral change. As Gyimah-Boadi and Asare (2021) argue, Ghana’s governance often suffers from a lack of local ownership and citizen participation.
True transformation must stem from maslahah ʿāmmah (public good)—a key principle of Islamic governance. Policies succeed when communities perceive them as moral imperatives, not bureaucratic orders. The Qur’an calls for mutual cooperation:
“And cooperate in righteousness and piety, but do not cooperate in sin and aggression.” (Qur’an 5:2)
Government, civil society, and religious institutions must therefore collaborate in nurturing civic virtue and environmental discipline.
B. The Failure of Local Enforcement
Local assemblies (MMDAs) are entrusted with enforcing sanitation by-laws, yet their power is often undermined by corruption, selective enforcement, and political interference. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:
“Each of you is a shepherd, and each of you will be asked about his flock.” (Sahih Bukhari, 893)
Leaders, therefore, bear direct accountability for environmental decay in their jurisdictions. The absence of consistent enforcement erodes moral will. Public trust will only return when the law is applied with fairness, free from political favoritism.
C. The Deficit of Civic Education
Sanitation education must move beyond posters and slogans to become part of moral formation. The National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) and Ministry of Education should embed sanitation ethics in curricula from primary to tertiary levels, linking hygiene to spirituality and civic responsibility.
As the Prophet (peace be upon him) said:
“The seeking of knowledge is obligatory upon every Muslim.” (Ibn Majah, Hadith 224)
Thus, sanitation knowledge, understood as protection of life and community, is itself a religious duty. Children must grow up seeing cleanliness as both ʿibādah and patriotism, nurturing a generation for whom civic morality is instinctive.
V. A Call to Action: Reclaiming Our Civic Virtue
The Qur’an commands believers to:
“Enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong.” (Qur’an 3:104)
This is not limited to theological debate but extends to practical morality: keeping streets clean, protecting rivers, and preventing public harm. The path to a clean Ghana lies in reviving civic virtue through faith-based leadership and community action.
By Imam Alhaji Saeed
Abdulai, the Author