The Director-General of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service, COP Lydia Yaako Donkor, rolled up her sleeves and joined citizens across the country in the National Sanitation exercise, lending her voice to the growing chorus linking a clean environment to a safer, more secure Ghana.

Her participation formed part of the nationwide clean-up drive directed by President John Dramani Mahama for public institutions, private organizations and ordinary citizens to undertake sanitation activities following recent flooding in parts of the country. The exercise brought together ministries, departments and agencies, metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies, the security services, private companies, traders and residents in a coordinated effort to desilt drains, sweep streets and clear refuse nationwide.

Taking to social media after the exercise, COP Donkor reflected on the deeper connection between sanitation and security, a theme that resonates strongly with her role as Ghana’s top criminal investigator.

“A safer community is built together. A clean community reflects a community that cares. Let us continue to work together, support one another, and take pride in the places we call home. Every small effort contributes to a healthier, safer, and stronger Ghana,” she wrote.

Her message strikes at the heart of a philosophy increasingly embraced by Ghana’s security establishment: that public order and public health are not separate concerns but intertwined pillars of national wellbeing. A clogged gutter is not merely an environmental hazard; left unaddressed, it can trigger flooding, displacement, and the kind of social disorder that creates fertile ground for crime. By stepping out personally to join the clean-up, the CID boss signaled that community safety begins not only with policing, but with the everyday discipline of civic responsibility.

The National Clean-Up Exercise, observed on July 10 and 11, has drawn support from a wide cross-section of Ghanaian society. Institutional heads who joined the exercise have called for it to become a sustained national sanitation programme rather than a one-off activity, with some proposing that similar exercises be organized quarterly to entrench a culture of environmental discipline among Ghanaians.

COP Donkor’s involvement adds a notable security dimension to that call. As the officer overseeing the country’s premier crime investigation body, her presence at the exercise underscores a growing recognition within Ghana’s law enforcement leadership that safe neighborhoods and clean neighborhoods go hand in hand. Her appeal for citizens to “take pride in the places we call home” echoes a broader peacebuilding principle: that community ownership, whether of sanitation or of security, is the surest foundation for lasting stability.

As Ghana continues to grapple with the aftermath of flooding in several regions, the participation of senior state officials such as COP Donkor in grassroots clean-up efforts sends a powerful message about shared responsibility, one that blends the language of law enforcement with the language of civic duty, and reminds citizens that building a healthier and safer Ghana is a task for everyone, not government alone.

Mustapha Bature Sallama.
Medical/ Science Communicator,
Private Investigator, Criminal investigation and Intelligence Analysis.
International Conflict Management and Peace Building.USIP
[email protected]
+233-555-275-880

Sources: Ghanamma.com (July 10-11, 2026, National Clean-Up Exercise coverage); Wikipedia profile of COP Lydia Yaako Donkor; social media statement by COP Lydia Yaako Donkor.