Accra, 28 Oct. GNA- The Accra Metropolitan Assembly, (AMA) on Sunday organized a clean-up exercise at both New and Old Tema Stations to clear the areas of filth generated after the Assembly's decongestion exercise.

About 300 sanitation agents from all the sub metros and other private sanitation companies conducted the clean-up exercise. Mr. Ali Baba Abature, Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Assembly said the exercise became necessary in order to make the place neat and also avert any health hazard, which might occur after the exercise since a lot of debris was generated.

He said by the first December, rehabilitation works on both the new and old Tema Stations would have begun and that would involve the replacement of dilapidated roofings at the Tema Station and the application of bitumen at the old Tema Station. He said the AMA would use money from its share of the Common Fund for the rehabilitation programme until the Department of Urban Roads could receive a loan from either the World Bank or the African Development Bank to also upgrade the status of the Old Tema Station to that of the New Tema Station.

As part of the rehabilitation projects of the New Tema station, Mr. Abature said the AMA would construct chop bars, sheds where drivers could relax and also provide first aid centres. "Engineers at the AMA are firmly on the ground and are trying to come out with places where these facilities could be built at the station", he added.

The PRO said as from Monday, the AMA would erect some barricades at some of the exits and also implore the services of some police officers to prevent hawkers from conducting business at the stations adding, "any hawker who would be found conducting business at any of the two stations would face the full rigours of the law". He expressed concern about the deplorable conditions under which hawkers at the stations conducted their businesses adding that the new face that the Assembly hoped to give to the stations would put a stop to that. "Even the toilets were used as store rooms by some traders and we all know the health implications that this uncalled for attitude carries; also about 90 per cent of tabs used at the New Tema station do not have metres which is not the best", he said.