The Municipal Chief Executive(MCE) for Ablekuma North Hon. Kofi Ofori has admonished citizens to own the tree planting exercise to boost environmental health to serve the good of society.
To this effect, he urged inhabitants to cultivate the habit of regularly planting trees in their homes and environs.
He said the value of trees to human existence calls for a collective effort from all well-meaning individuals to achieve the noble objective.
According to him, since we all benefit from the value of the existence of trees, we owe it a duty to ourselves and mankind to commit to this cause religiously.
The assembly embarked on the exercise in collaboration with the District National Disaster Management Organization(NADMO).
The MCE who made the remark in an interview following the launch of Green Ghana Day led a team of assembly officials to plant the first tree of a royal palm at the forecourt of the Odokor Salleria School.
He called on inhabitants to play their part by playing a watchdog role over the seedlings in their range.
Mr Ofori further said "we should all ensure that the seedlings are shielded from potential adverse effects, adding that they should do everything within their ability to sustain the seedlings.
Inhabitants , he said, could visit the assembly premises to collect seedlings for planting.
He mentioned some of the importance of trees to human existence as serving as windbreaks, ceasing erosion, producing fresh air among others.
He cautioned members of the public to desist from indiscriminate cutting of trees for any reason adding that anybody who intends to cut a nuisance tree or for any reason should come to the NADMO office for assistance.
Mr Ofori said persons who take the law into their own hands and indiscriminately cut trees could be dealt with by law.
The MCE said more than half of the tree planted last year are thriving due to the effective supervision of NADMO officers.
He disclosed that about 2900 trees is to be planted in the municipality this year going forward.
The Municipal NADMO Director, Mr. Johnson Amoah Danquah urged all residents to play their part through monitoring of the seedlings to ensure that the trees survive.
He said his team would continue to go round the municipality throughout the year, particularly the dry season to ensure that the trees are watered and sustained.
He said people must know the type of tree they are planting in order not for the tree to be wasted since trees come with sizes which could become a nuisance in future.
