Roland Ayoo, the Municipal Chief Executive for Bolgatanga Municipality, warned Friday that the Bolgatanga Jubilee Park in the Atulbabisi electoral area must be protected from growing misuse, calling on community leaders and authorities to take immediate, practical steps to restore and safeguard the public space.
Mr. Ayoo said the park, intended as a focal point for public events, festivals, and civic gatherings, has become a dumping ground for rubbish and a refuge for “miscreants,” who also remove infrastructure, smoke, and engage in other antisocial behaviour.
“You were there yourself; you saw how the Jubilee Park looked,” Ayoo told listeners. “People go there to defecate. People go there to leave rubbish. Cars go there to park, pour their oil, or litter the place.” He said the state-owned facility “belongs to all of us” and urged collective action to stop the decline.
Mr. Ayoo described incidents in which vendor louvers were removed and cited reports that young people use the site to smoke and hide. He voiced particular concern that the park’s condition could undermine planned public events, including a forthcoming military recruitment exercise.
“How would they be able to have it there in the presence of the littering and rubbish?” he asked, calling for a “conscious effort” to change attitudes and behaviour around the park.
The municipal chief urged local leadership to form a ward committee to help police the area, restrict access to nonresidents who come to dump waste or cause trouble, and reintroduce regular cleaning and security. He said the committee could work with the Municipal Assembly to identify and sanction offenders.
“It is the only way that can accelerate [action] and remove blame,” Ayoo said, noting that local communities who live closest to the facility should take a lead role in its protection. “Once the facility is situated in your electorate area… I expect him to do more.”
Ayoo said he has raised the issue within municipal circles and planned an executive meeting with the Municipal Chief Executive and other officials to pursue corrective steps. He also called on citizens to treat the Jubilee Park as a shared asset, a place for national events, festivals, and community gatherings, rather than a dumping site.
Source: a1radioonline.com|101.1Mhz|Mark Kwasi Ahumah Smith|Bolgatanga
