A Minister of State and Member of Parliament (MP) for Ketu-South, Fiifi Kwetey, has urged littoral communities to stop defecating at the beaches.

He said the sanctity of beaches as prime leisure areas must be kept at all cost.

Mr. Kwetey, making the appeal, said the country and the communities were missing the huge benefits from the coastlines, as potential tourist destinations, due to these practices.

He was inaugurating a 12-seater water closet toilet facility constructed by the Denu Premix Fuel Committee.

The location of the GHC 42,850 facility at the beach is to discourage open defecation on the shores there.

Mr Kwetey observed that beaches, along Ghana’s coastline, from Aflao in the Volta Region to Elubo in the Western Region, were filthy, defeating efforts at making the country a high class world-tourism destination.

He said it was pleasurable that the 53 per cent community-component of the premix fuel profit under the premix fuel allocation arrangement, from which the toilet project was funded, was being used well.

“The Landing Beach Committees in the area, including that of Denu are doing well, I urge you on,” Mr. Kwetey said.

He urged Premix Fuel Committees to live up to expectation, and not to consider the 53% profit reserve for their communities as windfalls.

Mr. Pascal Lamptey, Ketu South Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), called for unity among members of the committee and transparency in their activities.

According to him, the toilet project had come to boost the Assembly’s plan for infrastructure development in communities.

Mr Lamptey asked residents to pay their basic rates and other levies promptly.

Yevu Foli, the MCE’s representative on the Pre-Mix Fuel Committee, said records indicate that the Denu beach, considered one of the neatest around, hosts about 500 holiday makers, tourists and other revelers every weekend.

He stated that the toilet facility should make the beach more attractive to visitors, thereby creating more jobs in the area and called for the repair of Denu township roads.

Seth Abotsi, Acting Volta Regional Chief Fisherman, inaugurated Mr. Narhbi Lanyo, as new Chief Fisherman for Denu, as part of the programme.