<<Print>>

The Ghana Health Service (GHS) has called for a ban on the use of polythene bags for packaging food and other items. According to the Director-General of the service, Dr Ebenezer Appiah Denkyira, plastic materials were non-degradeable and, therefore, create a lot of filth in the country. In a telephone interview with the Daily Graphic in Accra yesterday, Dr Appiah Denkyira said the use of polythene bags, especially for packaging food, was a health hazard to people. He said what was more worrying was the fact that some people defecated into those polythene bags and threw them into open gutters and drains. The faecal matter was then washed into water bodies when it rained, leading to the outbreak of diseases such as cholera, Dr Appiah Denkyira pointed out. Cholera outbreak Since June, this year, over 10,000 cholera cases have been recorded across the country, with 92 fatalities in seven regions. Dr Appiah Denkyira said the cholera situation in the country this year had been worsening, as heaps of refuse kept piling up owing to the unavailability of dumpsites. Call to duty The GHS Director said the time had come for the people charged with the responsibility of managing waste to act and intensify efforts to recycle waste. He said most often, the public called on the GHS or the Ministry of Health to solve the problem of insanitary conditions in the country, but explained that it was the responsibility of the local authorities to provide such services in their respective areas. He urged the public to take precautionary sanitary measures to stay healthy.