Alhaji Yussif Ibrahim, the Zongo Chief of Abokobi-Pantang, has appealed to the Government to close the Abokobi-Pantang Landfill Site in the Ga East Municipal Assembly.
That, he said, would save the residents from contracting diseases and save them from other health-related hazards that would reduce productivity.
Alhaji Ibrahim made the appeal in an interview with Ghana News Agency (GNA) at Pantang-Abokobi in the Ga East Municipality of the Greater Accra Region on Monday.
He said several appeals and demonstrations by the residents of the area to the Municipal Assembly to close the site had fallen on deaf ears.
Alhaji Ibrahim said smoke emanating from the burning of the refuse at the site posed serious health-hazards to the people, adding that because of the revenue the assembly generated it felt reluctant to close it.
The Zongo Chief, who is a resident, said the assembly charged every vehicle a fee for dumping refuse collected from other jurisdictions including Accra and Tema to the site.
Alhaji Ibrahim said the use of the area as a dumping ground had attracted a lot of undesirable elements such armed robbers, scrap dealers, narcotic drug dealers and smokers to the area.
He said even though successive governments promised to close the site which had been operating for more than 20 years they had not gathered the political will to adhere to the call of the residents.
The Zongo Chief called on the Environmental Protection Agency to visit the area, assess the site and determine the wisdom in operating such facility close to the community and the Pantang Hospital, which is losing its patronage because of the site.
He said apart from the bad odour emanating from the site, refuse trucks littered the area and polluted the underground water, thus, making it unsafe for use.
Some residents the GNA spoke to threatened not to participate in any communal activity in the area if the site was not closed.
