Workers of the Forest Service Division (FSD) of the Forestry Commission have embarked on a route march in Ho to raise awareness on the need to protect the Kabakaba Hill Forest Reserve.

The route march forms part of the 2021 May Day celebration to register workers' displeasure about the continuing damaging activities in the Kabakaba Forest Reserve in Ho, without an end in sight.

The Ho District Manager of the FSD, Mr Newton Annobil Atuahene, told the Ghana News Agency that forests played a significant role in the existence of man, which called for their protection and sustainable management.

He said it was everyone’s responsibility to protect the forest reserve in order to leave the future generations with richer, better and more valuable forestry and wildlife endowments than inherited.

Mr Atuahene said although the Kabakaba Forest had been gazetted as a forest reserve, he feared the value of the resource would be lost as man’s illegal activities continued to increase.

He said houses and churches had sprawled in the forest, reminding the public that: "When the last tree dies, the last man dies."

The Volta Regional Customer Service Officer of the Forestry Services Division, Mr Gershen Amaglo, said those who smoked marijuana in the forest, defaecated and disposed of waste there had caused not just wildfires but also pollution.

He said the Forestry Commission had put in place strategies to ensure that the health of the reserve was maintained.

Mr Amaglo urged residents and stakeholders to develop a strong sense of ownership of the forest to protect it and decrease the depletion of resources.

The workers hoisted placards with inscriptions like; “No more houses in the Kabakaba Forest," “Protect the Kabakaba Forest" and "Stop farming in Kabakaba."