Some residents of Mankessim, in the Mfantseman West Municipality of the Central Region, on Thursday morning defied a heavy downpour to clean up the town, as preparations towards the visit of the United States of America President, Barrack Hussein Obama.

The residents, early in the morning, started desilting choked gutters and swept the market area and other suburbs of the trading town. Zoomlion staff also joined the exercise initiated by the Mfantseman Municipal Assembly.

The Zoomlion staff fumigated gutters with chemicals, while others cleared accumulated filth in the busy town.

The Mfantseman Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Mr. Henry Kweku Hayfron, joined the residents to undertake the exercise, and appealed to them to desist from the indiscriminate disposal of waste, which had resulted in the insanitary conditions.

He toured parts of the city to ascertain the level of drainage problems the town had been facing, in order to take immediate action to solve them.

Some of the residents openly complained to the MCE about the poor drainage system in the town, which needed urgent attention.

The MCE assured the residents that everything possible would be done to alleviate their drainage plight, which had exacerbated as a result of the rains.

Mr. Hayfron told the press that the preparation was to welcome President Obama to the region, and hinted that the investors, who would accompany the US President, would come by road, therefore, it was necessary to ensure a clean environment to impress them. He disclosed that a banner to welcome the US President will be boldly displayed on the highway, while another clean up exercise would be embarked upon before the visit, to ensure a clean environment.