Residents in the Kumasi metropolis today, Saturday thronged the streets to clean the city ahead of burial rites of the late Asante Queen mother.
A directive from the Manhyia Palace ordered that all residents join in giving the city a face-lift in terms of sanitation.
As part of the directive, all shops are to be opened after 12 midday when cleaning is over.
On Friday primary and Junior High school pupils helped clean the surroundings of the Kumasi Airport, through the Airport roundabout to the Manhyia Palace.
Roads leading to the Central Business District have also been blocked for this purpose.
The Kumasi Metropolitan Waste Department’s direction, Mr. Gorkeh Mia said “150 waste collecting tricycles have been deployed to take waste off the street after the general cleanup.”
The burial rites of the late Asante Queen mother will begin on Monday, 16 to Thursday 19th of this year.
Earlier, the Manhyia Palace had ordered that people stay indoors from 7pm of Thursday evening to 4am of Friday morning. This generated fear amongst residents, however, Otumfuo’s Mawrehene, Baffour Hyeaman Brantuo IV has allayed fears.
He said as tradition demands, “the journey to the village should go on uninterrupted, that is why we are asking people to stay indoors. The tradition of having peoples’ heads for burial was abolished 200 years ago.”
–
By: Lauretta Timah/citifmonline.com/Ghana