Omanghana
The Hohoe Magistrate Court in the Volta Region has fined a provision shop owner, Esther Ofori, GHS 240 for failing to participate in a mandatory communal clean-up exercise.
Ofori will serve a one-month prison sentence if she fails to pay the fine imposed by the court.
She was prosecuted for opening her shop and conducting business during designated communal sanitation hours, contrary to Section 21, Subsection 4 (i), (ii) and (v) of the Hohoe Municipal Assembly Bye-laws, 2018.
The court heard that at about 9:22 a.m. on Thursday, July 2, 2026, members of the Municipal Sanitation Taskforce found Ofori operating her provision shop in the Atabu area.
Instead of participating in the sanitation exercise by cleaning the surroundings of her shop or helping to desilt nearby gutters, she reportedly kept the business open and continued trading.
Under the Hohoe Municipal Assembly’s sanitation regulations, the first Thursday of every month is observed as a mandatory National Sanitation and Communal Clean-up Day.
The exercise runs from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m., during which commercial establishments are required to remain closed to allow residents and business operators to participate in cleaning their surroundings.
However, pharmacies, licensed chemical shops and organizations providing emergency humanitarian services are exempted from the temporary closure requirement.
Ofori pleaded guilty to the offence when she appeared before the court. Mr. Lambert Y. Keriba, who presided as a relieving magistrate, subsequently convicted her on her own plea and imposed the GHS 240 fine, with a one-month custodial sentence in default.
The prosecution was led by Environmental Health Analyst Daniel Dotse Eklo.
The ruling reinforces the Hohoe Municipal Assembly’s efforts to ensure compliance with local sanitation regulations and encourage residents and businesses to help maintain a clean and healthy environment.
Source: Omanghana
