The Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Mr Ahmed Ibrahim, has praised Ghanaians for their impressive turnout and commitment during the two-day national flood aftermath clean-up exercise initiated by President John Dramani Mahama.
Addressing a press conference to review the exercise, the Minister said the nationwide response demonstrated the country’s ability to achieve significant results through unity and collective action.
“If Ghanaians want to do something, we can do it, and based on that, may I also commend the various political parties for their outstanding participation in this exercise,” he stated.
Ahmed Ibrahim expressed gratitude to President Mahama for spearheading the initiative and commended Vice President Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang for actively participating in the exercise.
“In fact, she showed a motherly move in making sure that she moved with us to the market to see how the gutters and those things were all desilted,” he said.
The Minister also acknowledged the contribution of the Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin, for suspending parliamentary proceedings to enable Members of Parliament to participate in the exercise alongside their constituents.
“Wherever we went, you saw MPs together with their MMDCEs, traditional leaders and queen mothers leading the people in the exercise,” he noted.
Hon. Ahmed Ibrahim further commended ministers, deputy ministers, chief directors and public sector staff for working long hours to deploy logistics and coordinate activities across the country.
He also praised the security services, including the Ghana Armed Forces, Police Service, Fire Service, Immigration Service and Prisons Service, for their active involvement.
“Every ministry, every office, every institution, everybody was involved, and this was truly an all-inclusive cleanup exercise,” he said.
According to the Minister, the exercise also witnessed strong participation from citizens across political affiliations, underscoring the importance of national unity in addressing environmental challenges.
“You could see that everywhere you go, people came out in their numbers from both political divides,” he remarked.
He further commended private sector organisations for providing trucks and equipment to assist with the evacuation of debris, silt and abandoned vehicles from drains and waterways.
“It means in Ghana, we have the solutions and we have the logistics. If we have the leadership and the commitment, we will be able to take the country to where we want it to be,” he added.
To facilitate the final stages of the cleanup exercise, Hon. Ahmed Ibrahim announced that key waste transfer stations and landfill sites would remain open around the clock for two additional days, with waste disposal services being offered free of charge.
The facilities include the Achimota, Ashaiman, Pantang and Teshie Waste Transfer Stations, as well as the IRCP Kpone, ACARP Ekumfi and Kanda facilities, and the Adipa and Kpone Engineered Landfill Sites.
He encouraged residents and commercial waste transport operators to take advantage of the arrangement and dispose of waste responsibly.
“All tricycles and waste carriers transporting refuse to these facilities today and tomorrow will do so free of charge. Do not keep waste in your homes or communities,” he urged.
The Minister also directed Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives to remain actively engaged in supervising cleanup activities beyond the official closing hours to ensure that desilted materials and waste are promptly removed.
He further called on waste management companies to honour commitments made to clear refuse heaps generated during the exercise.
Hon. Ahmed Ibrahim concluded by emphasising that maintaining clean communities should not be treated as a one-off exercise but as a shared national responsibility.
“Sanitation and cleanliness is a shared responsibility. Our participation has been outstanding. Let us continue in that spirit,” he said.
