159 Views Posted on 09-Jul-2011 under Health

COURT TO TRIAL HOSPITALS, OFFICES & LANDLORDS WHO HAVE NO TOILET FACILITIES
By Evans Okai
The Public Relations Officer (PRO) of Accra Metropolitan Assembly, Numo Blaffo III has indicated that the Assembly is readying itself to prosecute all Landlords whose houses have no toilet facilities by 30th September 2011.
Speaking in an interview with the Health Digest News he said the AMA together with the World Bank made a survey in the city of Accra which reviewed that about 95% of the people in the live in houses without toilet facilities of which most of them live in the heavily populated areas.
Among the people that would be involved in the trial cases include Schools, Clinics, Hospitals, shops, offices and houses owners who have no toilet facilities at their disposals.
He said these outfits should have facilities such as wash rooms and toilets facilities but in the absence of these is a crime that should be trialed at the new court that has been established to try these cases in Accra.
The only houses that would be exempted from these trials would be those ones that were built before the establishment of AMA and offices that share these facilities with the attached houses.
Numo Blaffo lamented over the fact the some of the places where the team visited in Accra had toilet facilities while other landlords have turned their toilet facilities into rooms to rent them out.
He said other landlords have made a latrine for their tenants for such facilities but such facilities had long been banned and that those who are using such facility would equally be punished.
He said the assembly has sent notice to these landlords and that by 30th September those who will still have no such facilities in their houses would be prosecuted at the court.
He said the AMA has set three (3) sanitation courts at Ablekumah central, OkaiKoi North and La sub-metro to deal with sanitation and motto offences.
He added that the AMA has trained a number of working forces to check public defecation, a practice that has negative impact on the community.
He said the assembly is support a group of volunteers who are guiding the sea from filth to beat offenders especially those who defecate at the beach to the level they wish.
He said there is no law or harsh punishment for people who defecate around the beach.