North Gonja District Must End Open Defecation

For almost two decades of multi-party democracy in the history of this country, the residents of the then West Gonja District are yet to feel the impact of the development projects of modern political elite. The local government Ministry which the District Assembly represents at the grass root lived much to be desired in their development agenda.

It is common knowledge that Assemblies are grapples with problems but this does not shelved their development projects. The Assemblies are supposed to provide infrastructure, provide social amenities, and ensure security among a host of sectors in their Districts.

The issue of open defecation has attracted my attention as a result of the dire consequence this will have on the poor residents who are about fifty communities in the area. The people of North Gonja defecate openly and indiscriminately for lack of public toilets in the area. The households in the area do not have toilets and members take to open defecation for their last resort. The situation is disturbing since majority of the people source of drinking water are Streams, Dams, and other sources without pipe borne water.

It is imperative to put forward this piece to draw the attention of the assembly members to the threat of water borne diseases such as Schistosomiasis, Hepatitis in the area. The infectious bacteria through the open defecation can infect residents if steps are not taken to remedy the situation.

For me, the provision of public toilets in area by the assembly will help save lives and generate revenue for development projects in the area.