A Winneba Magistrate court has sentenced six recalcitrant environmental sanitation offenders to a 4.2 million-cedi or 400.20 Ghana Cedis fine. Each of them was to pay 600,000 cedis or 60 Ghana Cedis in default or two weeks imprisonment in hard labour. They are Uncle Dwodwo, Paa Kwasi, Uncle K. Sey and Brother Otoo, all artisans, Veronica Otoo, chop-bar keeper and Elizabeth Koomson the landlady, pleaded guilty to failing to observe sound environmental hygiene. The court presided over by Justice Michael Clement Dorleku, ordered the arrest of four other accused persons who failed to appear and issued a bench warrant for their arrest. They are Nana Edufua, Aunty Cecilia, Brother Isaac and Margaret Koomson. Prosecuting, Sammy Stephen Techie, Principal Environmental Health Officer, told the court that the accused persons failed to observe sound environmental hygiene in spite of several warnings and advice. He said that as a result they were summoned to appear before the court to serve as a deterrent to others. Passing sentence, Mr. Dorleku reminded people of the serious health hazard they inflict on the entire community and warned that the court would not hesitate to impose heavier penalties on future offenders. He commended Environmental Health workers in the area for their initiative but regretted that this was the first time such offenders had been charged since he began sitting in the district.Source: GNA