I would stop abuse of sirens in Accra – Henry Quartey

The Greater Accra Regional Minister-designate, Henry Quartey has said one of his topmost priorities if approved for the top job would be to end the abuse of sirens and vehicle strobe lights by high profile dignitaries in the country’s capital.

Answering questions during his vetting on Monday, March 1, 2021, Mr. Quartey told Parliament’s Appointments Committee that, if he is given the nod, he would tackle the menace, a task he said would not “sound too sweet in the ears of my colleagues.”

“When given the nod, I will ensure that the abuse of sirens in Accra and the use of blue lights will be minimised and this is one of the innovations I will bring to the region.

“As chairman of the REGSEC, this has to be stopped and we will do it. Now the President has made me his representative in the Region and this is one of the innovations I will bring to make Accra work,” he said.

Responding to questions on what measures he would institute to restore the teaching of Ga language in public schools in Accra, Mr Quartey said he would personally lead the cause to work hand in hand with the Ghana Education Service (GES) to ensure that Ga language remained in the syllabus of schools as well as ensure enough teachers of Ga to teach the language.

He indicated, “When given the nod, I will collaborate with the Minister of Education and the GES to ensure that the few teachers that we have to teach Ga do so and we will call on other opinion leaders to support the teaching of the language”.

On what steps he would take to reduce crime in the capital, the nominee said issues of crime across the country were matters that remained the concern of citizens

He therefore pledged to leverage the security experiences he gained from the Interior and National Security ministries to work with the members of REGSEC and other stakeholders to minimise crime in the region.

He showed the committee a document, titled “Let’s make Accra work again”, which, he said, contained issues of security, sanitation, fight against COVID-19 which he would implement to make Accra safe and clean.