The Awutu Senya East Environmental and Sanitation Office, on Tuesday arrested and arraigned three persons before the Akweley District Court for various sanitation offences.

 The offences include discharging wastewater in the open, dumping and burning waste in the open, and the use of pit latrines.

The accused persons were arrested by a bench warrant after refusing to honour an invitation by sanitation officers and a subsequent court summons.

The first accused, Ebenezer Otoo, was charged with dumping and burning waste in the open. The second accused, Margaret Yeboah, was charged with using a pit latrine, while Abdul Aziz, the third accused, was charged with discharging wastewater in the open.

Ebenezer Otoo and Abdul Aziz pleaded guilty, while Margaret Yeboah pleaded not guilty before the court presided over by Mrs Annie Adobor,

In her ruling, the magistrate acquitted and discharged Abdul Aziz with the reason that he had fixed the open drain discharging dirty water into the open.

However, the cases of Ebenezer Otoo and Margaret Yeboah were adjourned, and granted bail of GHC20,000 each, with Otoo requiring two sureties and Yeboah one surety.

 Otoo is to reappear on Monday, September 29, and is expected to register with a waste management company before that date while Margaret Yeboah will be re-arraigned on Friday, October 10.

Mr Paa Kwesi Asiedu, Environmental Health Officer in Charge of Prosecution, said the work of the previously known Town Council, popularly called “tankass”, was still in force, cautioning that recalcitrant individuals who flouted sanitation laws would be prosecuted.

He further highlighted serious challenges facing sanitation officers in the municipality, including frequent threats of physical and verbal attacks.

 Mr Asiedu also noted that the unit lacked basic logistics such as rakes, wheelbarrows, dustbins, and brooms and appealed for support to enable officers to carry out their duties effectively.