NCCE Gomoa East Calls for Collective Action on Environmental Sanitation

The Gomoa East Office of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) has called on residents to make environmental sanitation a daily civic responsibility to protect public health and safeguard the environment.

The NCCE Gomoa East Office appeared on Fresh FM 99.1 MHz, a community-based radio station in Posin, to sensitize citizens on the need to maintain clean and healthy surroundings.

Speaking during the program, the Gomoa East Municipal Director of the NCCE, Mr. Charles Paintsil, reminded citizens of their constitutional responsibility under Article 41(k) of the 1992 Constitution to protect and safeguard the environment.

He explained that poor sanitation contributes to the spread of preventable diseases such as malaria, cholera, diarrhea and typhoid. He noted that choked gutters and stagnant water provide breeding grounds for mosquitoes, while improperly disposed waste can contaminate food and water and expose communities to disease outbreaks.

Mr. Paintsil further observed that sanitation-related illnesses also place a financial burden on households and government through increased healthcare costs. Loss of labor and productivity resulting from illness, he added, could negatively affect the economy.

According to him, sanitation is a national concern that requires a holistic approach and functional community systems. While Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs), Zoomlion and private waste management companies provide waste collection services, individuals, households, schools, churches and businesses also have a responsibility to properly manage their waste before collection.

He urged residents to dispose of waste in designated containers and encouraged those using particular spaces to take responsibility for desilting gutters and cleaning their immediate surroundings. Parents, he added, should instill good sanitation habits in their children, including the practice of putting sweet wrappers and other waste in dustbins and participating in communal labor.

Mr. Paintsil identified markets, lorry stations, schools, beaches, gutters and crowded public events as areas requiring particular attention due to littering and the accumulation of plastic waste. He cautioned that such conditions could attract flies and other disease-causing organisms, while waste washed into water bodies could contaminate sources of water for communities.

He therefore appealed to citizens to take advantage of the current reduction in rainfall to intensify clean-up activities and adopt good sanitation practices. He stressed that when healthy habits are cultivated consistently, they become part of daily life rather than seasonal responses to sanitation challenges.

In conclusion, Mr. Paintsil emphasized that sanitation should not be viewed solely as a government responsibility requiring major policy interventions, but as a civic lifestyle that demands personal commitment, collective action, and a strong sense of responsibility towards the environment.