Assembly members tasked to rid Ghana of filth

Reverend Dr Daniel Sylvanus Mensah Torto, Anglican Bishop of Accra, has called on the metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies, to take pragmatic steps to deal with filth and unauthorised structures.

He also called for enforcement of the legal and regulatory frameworks of the assemblies to ensure compliance of acceptable behaviours from all sections of the community members.

Rev Torto, who was addressing the 108 newly elected assembly members of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), urged them to revise the assemblies’ bye-laws to enforce penalties to conform to modern day realities.

He said as an assemblymen and women: “It is an honour to sacrifice yourselves to God’s work and He will in turn pay you for the glorification of His name which is more gracious than selling your conscience for money.”

Rev Torto who chaired the function told the assembly members that; “being an assembly member is not money making venture but rather the commitment to work to raise the status of your district.”

“We must bear in mind that the governance of this country would definitely have a great impact on our lives, hence the need to always act to do without thinking of money,” he stressed.

He appealed to the assembly members to be committed and to change their attitude towards the districts, adding that; “Ghanaians are looking up to you and would not forgive you so you have to concentrate on things that would move your districts forward.”

Dr Alfred Oko Vanderpuije, the Accra Metropolitan Chief Executive said the assembly system facilitates local level democracy through active and popular participation of the people and urged the assembly members to focus on the development of their localities and the AMA as a whole.

He reminded the assembly members of the mission statement of the AMA; “To improve the quality of life of the people, especially the poor and vulnerable by providing and maintaining basic services in the area of education, health, sanitation and other social amenities, in the contest of discipline, a sense of urgency and a commitment to excellence.”

“You must be strong advocates of development in your areas and not to resort to illegal activities such as assisting people to place containers on pavements and in unauthorized areas,” he said.

Dr Vanderpuije cautioned the assembly members to stop the needless struggle over the management of public toilets and other public facilities.

He said; “This is a matter of concern and calls for the attention of all of us. We need to prepare ourselves adequately to be able to deal with the shocks and stresses such as floods, fire outbreaks, chronic water shortages and unemployment.”

He appealed to the assembly members to spend more of their time and energy on committee meetings to adopt implementable strategies that would keep the city resilient at all times.

Professor John Nabilla, President of the National House of Chiefs, told the assembly members to live up to the responsibilities repose in them by the people to improve their living conditions and make them part of the decision-making process and governance.

“What is important is you must all be dedicated…and work hard together as a people with a common objective to develop your districts,” he said.