Kojo Acquah distributing the items to traders at the markets with the support of the taskforce
The Effia-Kwesimintsim Municipal Assembly (EKMA) in the Western Region has recorded 67 active cases of the coronavirus disease (COVID 19) and three death cases.
The Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Kojo Acquah, who revealed to DAILY GUIDE in an interview, noted that last year the COVID-19 cases in the municipality decreased to zero per cent but started increasing after the Christmas festivities.
“In fact we have realized that the people are no more adhering to the COVID-19 safety protocols.
“So last Friday, EKMA conducted a stakeholders’ engagement with the drivers’ union, market queens, seamstresses, hairdressers and the nine chiefs within the municipality to discuss how to deal with the issue,” he stated.
He said it was agreed that the people needed to be educated and encouraged to adhere to the safety protocols just as they were doing last year.
According to the MCE, the government has provided the assembly with some quantities of face masks and hand sanitizers.
“So on Tuesday, February 9, 2021, I decided to go out and share the nose masks and sanitizers with the help of the assembly’s task force to market women, drivers and other residents living within the municipality,” he added.
He stated that he also used the opportunity to advise and educate the people on the disease and the need to strictly adhere to the COVID- 19 protocols.
Mr. Acquah indicated that the items were distributed to traders in the three major markets within the municipality including the Effiakuma, Kwesimintsim and Apremdo markets.
“We also went to lorry stations within the municipality and the people promised to adhere to the safety protocols,” he added.
He said he made it clear to the people and told them that, “As I have come to give you the nose mask myself and educated you on the protocols, after this if you do not put on your face masks, the task force will arrest you and the law will deal with you.”
He continued, “The task force is also going to monitor the strict adherence of the protocols and arrest anybody who will go against the rules.”
He noted, “Last week, the Municipal NADMO Director together with his team went to 21 churches in the area to make sure the members were adhering to the protocols and this Friday the team will visit the mosques on the same mission.”
“We are going to conduct this exercise until we see that everybody is adhering to the protocols and we will arrest anyone that will go against the directives,” he stressed.
“The disease is real. It has killed three people in our municipality. I don’t want anybody to be killed by the virus in our area anymore so I will plead that we should all adhere to the safety protocols,” he pointed out.
From Emmanuel Opoku, Takoradi