Mahama Orders Immediate Opening of Long-Abandoned Transfer Stations to Stop Waste Returning to Drains

President John Dramani Mahama has directed the immediate opening and operationalisation of six transfer stations that have remained unused for more than nine years. The move is to ensure proper disposal of refuse collected during the nationwide clean-up exercise and prevent waste from being washed back into drains during rainfall.

The directive follows an appeal from the Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Ahmed Ibrahim, who called for designated dumping points to manage the large volumes of waste removed from drainage channels during the exercise.

Speaking on Saturday, July 11, during the second day of the National General Cleaning Exercise, President Mahama said the decision was necessary to address a recurring challenge where waste cleared from drains is left by the roadside and later swept back into the drainage system.

He noted that previous clean-up efforts had failed to produce lasting results because the waste removed from gutters was not properly evacuated.

“Yesterday, one of the directives I gave was that in the past we do these clean-ups, we take all the garbage out of the gutters, but we don’t follow up and come and collect the garbage that is by the roadside. And so when the rain falls, it just washes all the dirt back in,” he said.

President Mahama explained that the focus of the second day of the exercise was to ensure that waste gathered from drains and communities was loaded onto trucks and transported to approved disposal sites.

He added that the volume of waste generated was too large to be cleared in a single day, requiring continued efforts by state agencies beyond the exercise.

“The army and the other agencies will continue until we are able to clear all the garbage that was taken out of the drains,” he stated.

The President further announced that waste collectors, including private operators, would no longer need to travel long distances to sites such as Amasaman. Instead, they could use the nearest transfer stations before the waste is moved to final disposal facilities.

“We’ve had six transfer stations that were built more than nine years ago. Unfortunately, they were not put into operation. So, we have asked the contractor — that is Zoomlion — to open the transfer stations so that they can take the garbage there,” he said.

President Mahama commended Ghanaians for their commitment to restoring affected communities after the recent floods, adding that the collective effort would help Accra recover and emerge stronger.

— CitiNewsRoom