Mohammed Nii Adjei Sowah
The Mayor of Accra, Mohammed Nii Adjei Sowah, has cautioned sections of the media against spreading lies and vile speculation.
It follows claims by some online portals that the Minister for Inner City and Zongo Development, Mustapha Abdul-Hamid and himself (Adjei Sowah), “have jointly commissioned a one-seater latrine in a suburb of Accra.”
In a statement issued and signed by Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the AMA, Gilbert Ankrah, he noted that “although the said publications did not confirm when this event took place, it states that both the minister and the Accra Mayor appeared without facemasks, mischievously suggesting that the event took place amidst the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.”
The AMA, however stated that “there is no iota of truth in the publication and that the said event which took place as far back as January 20, 2020 was an inspection of some 250 completed household toilet facilities constructed by the Akufo-Addo government for residents of Jamestown and Chorkor at no cost to the beneficiaries.”
As the photographs depict, he indicated that there was heavy media presence at the said event and the records were there to verify.
According to him, over 27,000 toilets have so far been constructed in various homes in Accra since 2017 under the government’s one household, one toilet facility, which seeks to promote cleanliness and eliminate open defecation by ensuring that there is a toilet facility in every household.
Under the project, which was supported by the World Bank, he noted that the Government of Ghana paid 70 per cent of the construction cost for the toilet facility while households bore the remaining 30 per cent.
However in this particular instance, the statement said the Ministry of Zongo and Inner City Development absorbed the 30%, hence the inspection.
The assembly has therefore assured the public that as an institution it will not undertake any activity or event especially during this time of Covid-19 without adhering to all the safety protocols and in this instance the wearing of facemask.
“The assembly is by this response urging the general public to ignore the said publication and treat as propaganda and mischief intended to attack and discredit the hard-earned reputation of government officials,” it said, insisting “this is a sad example of bad journalism that we must endeavour to eradicate from our public discourse.”
By Charles Takyi-Boadu