Wearing of nose mask directive still in force

Government says it is not relenting in its effort to ensure compliance of the law that criminalizes the act of not wearing nose mask.

According to the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), the law has been incorporated into the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area (GAMA) Sanitation project to ensure that persons who flout both the sanitation laws and the wearing of nose masks directive are dealt with concurrently.

In an interview with Citi News, MCE for the Korle Klottey Municipal Assembly and a leader of the GAMA Sanitation team, Nii Adjei Tawiah said the law on the wearing of nose masks is still in force.

He noted that, “We are also supporting the assembly with the support of the Ghana police force and the army. Their presence is just to ensure that we are getting the message through by way of helping us through the market, streets, etc. So we are going to get people to do some work.”

“They [the citizens] are sometimes found on the spot and asked to buy some [face masks] but when they are not in the position to pay, sometimes we also provide some of the face masks. So we visit places like markets, high streets, and places where people converge to make sure that the people are observing the protocols as we have been directed by the President.”

President Akufo-Addo made the wearing of face masks mandatory in the wake of a sharp rise in the number of COVID-19 cases in Ghana and has through an Executive Instrument asked the police and law enforcement agencies to lead its enforcement.

People who fail to wear face masks in public risk a prison sentence of four to 10 years or a fine ranging from GHS12,000 to GHS60,000, or both.

Just a few weeks ago, the Operations Team of Railways Police Command in Accra arrested 40 people for non-compliance with the mandatory wearing of face mask directive.