Drivers and traders at the Ho Central lorry station have expressed disgust over the poor waste management services rendered by the Ho Municipal Assembly (HMA).
They also blamed the Ho Municipal Environmental Health Directorate for shirking its supervisory and monitory responsibilities and allowing the lorry station to be filled with filth and pungent smell.
A visit to the lorry station last Monday morning at about 10:00 am in the morning by DAILY GUIDE confirmed the claims by the drivers, traders, passengers and other users of the station.
The three large containers situated at the lorry station could be seen over-filled and spilled over onto the floor. The stench that emanated from the refuse was enough to cause some health risks to persons close to it.
Apart from the stench, people at the lorry station were worried about the numerous health risks one could suffer from the over-spillage of the refuse.
They blamed Zoomlion Ghana Limited for not being up to the task, particularly in the last four months.
Zoomlion Sets the Record Straight
When Zoomlion was contacted, the Deputy Regional Manager, Richard Attipoe, denied Zoomlion’s involvement in the poor sanitation and waste management. He explained that Zoomlion has been responsible for waste management at the lorry station and market for the past four months, and hence could not be blamed for waste problems at those places.
He stated that the Ho Municipal Assembly (HMA) through the Municipal Environmental Health Officer (MEHO), Samuel Hanson Galley, has assigned another entity to take charge of the said area for four months now.
Secondly, the Environmental Health Directorate of the HMA that supervises sanitation and waste management services in the municipality has charged the same entity to also engage in door-to-door and other similar services of Zoomlion in the municipality.
Apart from these two places, Zoomlion continues to provide waste management services in other parts of the municipality, including street cleaning, door-to-door refuse collection, institutional cleaning, drainage management, among others.
He concluded that “despite the new arrangements by the HMA, Zoomlion has been voluntarily assisting whenever possible to improve the situation in the lorry station and the market.”
HMA Health Directorate Reply
Mr Hanson Galley who spoke to the press disclosed that the new company, Zatti & Fellis Company Limited, was having some temporary challenges with funds, fuel and intermittent breakdown of their vehicles, as the assembly is unable to promptly pay them for their services.
That, notwithstanding, arrangements have been made to sort those challenges out. He added that the new company was made to take over due to similar complaints in the past against Zoomlion.
He assured the drivers, traders and residents within the Ho Central market and lorry station that his outfit would continue to monitor and evaluate the work of all waste management companies within the municipality to ensure a cleaner and healthy environment.
From Fred Duodu, Ho (freduoo@gmail.com)