Member of Parliament (MP) for the Ejisu in the Ashanti Region has moved in to address the hygiene and sanitation concerns of inhabitants in the constituency.
Over the years, inhabitants of Akyawkrom and other communities within the Ejisu Municipality use unhygienic facilities as places of convenience.
The stench from these unkempt facilities and the dangers to users have given way to open defecation in some instances.
These concerns prompted the MP for the area, John Ampontuah Kumah to intervene by constructing 16-seater capacity ultramodern public toilets facilities across 30 communities in the Ejisu Municipality.
The facilities that are at different stages of completion are accompanied by mechanized boreholes to ensure a constant flow of water for their operation.
The boreholes will also serve as a source of water supply to communities where these facilities are located.
One of such facilities have been commissioned and handed-over to inhabitants of Akyawkrom, a community in the Ejisu Municipality.
The Ejisu MP said the intervention was part of his pledge to prioritize the health of his constituents and also provide them with basic amenities to make life comfortable for communities in the constituency.
“Before my decision to contest as MP for Ejisu, I did a research and I found out that one of the key problems of the various communities was decent public toilet facilities. So we decided to partner with the private sector. Initially, it was with Ghana First, they started these projects, but they encountered problems along the way. We have able to contact other private firms to ensure the completion of these projects for the communities”, he said
Addressing the chiefs and people of Akyawkrom at a mini durbar with limited attendees due to COVID-19 induced restrictions, Mr. Ampontuah Kumah emphasized the need for maintenance of the facility and also pledged work hard to provide the needed amenities for communities in the constituency.
Automated payment system
The public toilet facilities have been designed to accept automatic payment by users.
Users will have to drop a 50 pesewas coin into a machine to be able to access the public toilet.
The system has taken off human contact and helps owners of public toilets to maximize profit and also render accounts easily.
Mr. Kumah explained that the innovation used at the facility as a way to leverage technology in spearheading development in the constituency.
Moment of Joy
For inhabitants of Akyawkrom, who are the beneficiaries of the project, the intervention by the MP came at the right time.
Inhabitants share harrowing experiences in using unhygienic public toilets in the community.
A resident, Yaa Mintaah said “The toilet facility we use is in a very bad state. When the ladies use it, there is always a possibility of contracting diseases. Others defecate anyhow at the facility and the place is now full. We don’t even have a place for convenience”.
She described the commissioning and handing over of the ultramodern public toilet to the community as a “moment of joy”.
Other inhabitants including opinion leaders were excited about the intervention and were full of praise for the Ejisu MP.