Military personnel based in Lamin Koto village, Janjangbureh police station officers and staff of regional health team in collaboration with local communities in various areas in the Central River Region on Saturday 25th September 2011 embarked on a massive cleansing exercise in Janjangbureh and the regional health office in Bansang.
Speaking in an interview with The Point, the CRR Regional Health Director underscored the significance of the exercise.
“Cleanliness is next to godliness,” he said, and added that a healthy mind is found in a healthy body.
“This exercise was meant to reduce disaster vulnerabilities in the area as we are in the rainy season, and the chances of contracting diseases due to the environment is high,” he said.
Mr Njie commended all those who in one way or the other contributed to the exercise, and noted that as health workers they should set standards for the rest to follow.
He revealed that plans are underway to organize similar exercises in all the health facilities across the region.
The platoon commander at the military barracks, Sgt. Arjuma Camara, said that the exercise was meant to promote the health of the people, and “as security personnel we are not protecting lives and properties, but also always interested in health aspects of the populace in the area”.
“Cleaning potential areas for mosquito breeding would definitely reduce the spread of malaria in the area,” he added.
He also commended members of the other security services for upholding President Yahya Jammeh’s initiative, while urging other people to emulate them and calling on shopkeepers and business operators in the area to improvise temporary dustbins to collect waste for onward dumping at allocated sites.
The station officer, chief inspector Suntu Keita at Janjangbureh police station, thanked his colleagues for coming in their large numbers to partake in the cleansing exercise, in order to ensure that the town was kept clean.
