Kumasi, Feb 27, GNA - Vice President John Dramani Mahama at the weeken= d gave the assurance that government would not abandon any development projec= t in Kumasi and the Ashanti Region.

"Work on most of the projects in the Kumasi metropolis have been stalled due to the fact that they were financed by the government of Ghana funds, but for now we are sourcing for funds from other areas that will complete all the abandoned projects in the coming months." Vice President said this when he joined the people of Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly to clean and desilt choked gutters.

Some weeks ago there were stories suggesting that government had abandoned major development projects in the Kumasi Metropolis which prompte= d the Vice President's reaction.

He said apart from being central to the entire country, Kumasi was the second largest city with high economic viability and could not be ignored. "Government cannot forget Kumasi, because it is central and sensitiv= e and in due course all abandoned projects will be completed." He called on the political leadership of the region to work hard to reclaim the accolade of 'Garden City of West Africa', which had eluded them over the years due mainly to appalling environmental conditions and lack of a committed attitude towards good sanitary practices.

On sanitation, the Vice President called on everybody to contribute meaningfully towards the achievement of environmentally friendly conditions adding 'everybody has a stake in the control of our environment in the country.' He said government would soon embark on a comprehensive campaign on plastic disposals to rid the cities of plastic filth.

Vice President Mahama said under the campaign, certain grammes of plastics would be banned to pave way for more environmentally friendly plastics that could be recycled for years without negative repercussions on human existence.

"The first hurdle to solving the plastic problem is to change our attitude towards the disposal of such plastics and other hazardous practices."