The Minister-designate for the Greater Accra Region, Mr. Henry Quartey has intimated that, he will do his best in fighting the issue of drug abuse in the Greater Accra Region by involving some community leaders.
Speaking on how best the issue of drug abuse can be tackled in the communities as he faced the Appointments committee today March 1, 2021, he stated that what he will bring on board will be to get the traditional and opinion leaders in the Zongo communities to be able to lead that charge in these particular areas to fight the ongoing menace.
“As you rightly put it, awareness programmes have been created by the governmental and non-governmental agencies. They have done all these but perhaps, they have not included all the Imams and opinion leaders who are effective in the Zongo communities and I think that it is about time and myself, being a Zongo boy, will help lead the path to help us in educating our brothers and sisters on the need to move away from these drugs as it is causing a lot of health problems.”
Henry Quartey
He further stated that, the National Commission on Civic Education (NCCE) and the Ministry of Health will have to come on board to help with educative materials so that, the people involved will see the implications that come with the abuse of these drugs.
Touching also on the use of motorcycles in the country popularly known as “Okada”, as to whether he still maintains his stance for it to be legalised as against the government’s move to make it illegal, he averred that, motorcycles are used as means of transportation to many but the issue with it in the country is how it operates which has become a cause of concern which has to be dealt with.
Mr. Quartey indicated that further consultations and engagement will have to come on to deliberate on the misuse and the unlawfulness of some of these riders.
“You cannot run away from it entirely, it is actually here. So, what is it that we can do to ensure the safety of our people who actually use the service? What is it that we can do in terms of our security and what is that we can do in terms of our general public who use these services? I believe we should do further consultation and engagement.”
Henry Quartey
The Regional Minister-designate also said he will deal with political elites and other persons who abuse sirens and strobe lights in the capital city. Mr. Quartey told Parliament’s Appointments Committee that, if he is given the nod, he will tackle the menace head-on.
“What I am about to say will not be nice in the ears of my colleagues. The abuse of sirens. When given the nod, I would ensure that the abuse of sirens and blue lights are minimized. This is an innovation I want to bring to the region.”
Henry Quartey
His comment comes on the back of a growing trend in Ghana where drivers especially SUV owners use sirens to move through traffic, causing public nuisance in the process and also enjoying unmerited advantage over other road users.
