Kpone Chiefs worried ...over dumping of excreta in Gao Lagoon

The chief and people of Kpone, near Tema, have expressed great worry over the continuous dumping of human excreta into the Gao Lagoon, which is one of the two lagoons in the area that serve as a source of livelihood to the inhabitants of the area.

Almost all the private waste management trucks operating within the Tema Metropolis and beyond have turned the area into their dumping site.

The practice is such after collecting the human excreta from the various homes and places, they dump them into close to the Gao Lagoon in Kpone, and eventually the waste drifts slowly into the lagoon. The practice has rendered the lagoon dead since the water is no longer good for the fishes.

What is sad about the whole issue is that the Tema Metropolitan Assembly (TMA) has given this action official consent because they stationed one Mr. Saah at the dumping site, to collects tolls from those who come to dump the excreta.

Speaking to the press at the lagoon site, the Wulomo of Kpone, Numo Tetteh Leno, who is in-charge of the lagoon, disclosed that the main line through which the human waste is expected to flow into the sea has been blocked for the past eight months.

He explained that when reports reached him about the situation of the lagoon, he went straight to one Mr. Abdulai, the Sanitation Director at the TMA and informed him about the situation.

According to the Wulomo, Mr. Abdulai assured him that he would send people to repair the lines so that the waste can flow straight into the sea, instead of flowing into the lagoon and contaminating it. He added that up till now, nothing has been done about the choked lines and the waste continues to flow into the lagoon leaving a very bad stench in the area, thereby making it very difficult and unpleasant for the people living close to the site.

He hinted that last Thursday at about 2:00 pm, on their way to inspect the situation, they came across four vehicles dumping human waste at the area. They arrested the drivers and impounded the vehicles.

The registration numbers of the vehicles were giving as GR 4407 V, GE 4809 V - belonging to a company called Sanitation International, and ER 1961 W and GW 9996 U, belonging to the Honourable Waste Management company.

The driver of vehicle number GE 4809 V, Francis Kobla, disclosed that they always pay an amount of GH¢ 8.00 to the toll collector who gives them a receipt before they are allowed to dump the waste there. He revealed that he has been dumping the waste there because he was asked to do so by his boss.

To Numo Tetteh Leno, this goes to show that TMA is very much aware of this illegal practice taking place at the lagoon site, but cannot explain why they have not done anything about it.

He called on TMA to come and repair the choked line to enable the human excreta flow straight into the sea, adding that the culprits who have been caught were going to be arraigned before the court of law.

A source at the Kpone District Police headquarters confirmed that they arrested the four vehicles last Thursday, but all the four drivers have been granted bail.

The source said investigations were ongoing and the four would be arraigned before court very soon.