Residents of Yagbon-Kura bemoan the lack of toilet facilities
The locked up completed GNPC Foundation 20 seater toilet facility at Yagbon-Kura
Correspondence from Savannah Region
Read full articleOpen defecation is on the ascendency at Yagbon-Kura, a suburb of Damongo in the Savannah Region because of the lack of places of convenience despite having a completed GNPC Foundation toilet situated in the area.
Residents of the community in an interview with GhanaWeb, said they opt to ease themselves in nearby bushes and open spaces because the majority of the houses there are not equipped with toilet facilities.
They lamented that the unsanitary situation of the over three thousand populated areas exposes them to health and environmental hazards.
According to them, they fear the dire consequences of resorting to open defecation but added that they have no options.
A resident, Issahaku Tahiru bemoaned that the situation if not curtailed will bring extreme health implications, particularly on the lack of sanitation and water facilities in the community.
"The truth is that we don't have toilet facilities in almost all the houses in this area. Even basic social amenities such as water are hard to come by. So the situation is serious here and needs to be addressed to prevent us from contracting diseases such as diarrhoea and other health-related problems," he said.
"It is because we don't have toilet facilities that open defecation is rising here even though we know practicing open defecation can bring a lot of diseases to the area but what do we do when we don't have an option," said another resident.
Meanwhile, a completed GNPC Foundation 20 seater toilet facility situated in the area has been locked up forcing residents to depend on open spaces for convenience.
The facility according to residents of the area when opened for use will bring an end to the open defecation being practiced in the area.
They described the situation as unfortunate and called on the relevant authorities to have the facility opened for use.
The Assemblyman for the area, Mr. Mbigamsi Mugeez when contacted said persistent efforts have been made to have the toilet facility opened for use and seeing the light of day.
He opined that the land on which the toilet facility is built is in litigation and yet to be resolved whilst assuring that stakeholders will have the issue and many others fixed.
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