Flood: Stiffer Punishment for Dumping of Refuse into Drains, Road Median in Osun

By Abdulrofiu Agboola

In a bid to avert flooding incident and ensure a clean and healthy environment in Osun state, government has warned the people to desist from the habit of dumping refuse on road median, drains, stream channels and other un-approved sites to avoid facing the full wrath of the law.

The General Manager, Osun State Waste Management Agency (OWMA), Alhaji Ganiyu Oyeladun, gave the warning while addressing journalists in his office in Osogbo.

Oyeladun who eulogized Governor Rauf Aregbesola for his effort to permanently put an end to flooding in the state, stated that the present administration has provided workable options to help the community manage domestic waste in the environmentally friendly manner.

Warning people living close to river bank not to block waterways with refuse to prevent flooding Oyeladun added that any person caught depositing refuse or waste matter or other materials on the media of the road, street or public places will face the wrath of law.

According to him, the decision of the state government to enforce indiscriminate dumping of refuse law was to ensure that the people of the state live in tidy environment as well as to avert flood disaster in the state.

It would be recalled that the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency has recently announced that Osun state is among the 14 states to experience heavy floods due to rise in sea levels and tidal surge.

The Osun OWMA Boss who charged the residents of the state on the need for them to comply and instill the culture of cleanness said for the predictions of the NHSA to not come to pass in the state, both the governments and residents have key roles to play.

Oyeladun noted that the state government has taken proactive step towards ensuring that the people of the state live in a healthy coexistence and that was what brought about the procurement of the Ro-Ro refuse truck waste bin for PSP programme.

He stressed  that going by the step taken by the state government, nobody would have any excuses to give if he or she is caught running foul of the law, since a lot of sensitization and enlighten programme on the hazards of dirty environment and the menace of flooding have been done by the government throughout the state.

He further explained that state government would leave no stone unturned insuring that the state remain a peaceful and disaster free state, saying efforts are on top gear to organize a stakeholders meetings to deliberate on the hazards of indiscriminate refuse dumping.

“They should also desist from doing anything that can block the waterways but instead try to do daily and weekly cleaning of their immediate environment.”

“To ensure dumping of refuse is made easy; the agency had made available 61 refuse trucks and divided the state into cluster areas for administrative purposes”

He further explained that all local government areas of the state have been giving dumping sites and charged people of the state to make their environment hygienic.

Emphasizing on the importance of Environmental Developmental Charges Oyeladun said that the government has commenced legal actions against 18 banks over their refusal to offset their ED charges.

He, therefore, appealed to corporate organizations in the state to take the issue of Environmental Developmental Charges seriously, saying they should all see it as their statutory obligation.