| City
of garbage
...Lagos residents lament inefficiency of waste managers
By TESSY OKOYE
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
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• PSP men at work
PHOTO : THE SUN PUBLISHING |
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The state of the environment, some say, is the reflection
of the quality of life of the people. The ability to manage waste without causing
negative impact on the populace can be said to be one of the hallmarks of a developed
country.
Until 1999, waste management in Lagos State was the sole responsibility
of local governments. This was, however, taken over by the state government, which
introduced private sector participation (PSP). The initiative was received with
mixed feelings. Initially, Lagosians commended the performance of the operators.
Wastes
are gradually finding their way back to where they should not be. Now, bus stops,
markets, drainages, express-way, kerbs, and residential areas have become garbage
dumps.
Rickety broken down PSP trucks meant for daily evacuation of refuse
now dot major roads in Lagos. The trucks, barely make the journey to their destinations
as they always break down, owing to poor maintenance.
If a broken down
truck laden with garbage is not quickly evacuated, residents of such area are
forced to live with puke-inducing stench from the decaying waste.
Alhaji
Suleman Animasahun, a landlord in Oyetayo Street, Oshodi, said: “ I can
not say they are not trying, but their operation is now compared with when they
started. If they managed to come to your area to pack overflowing waste, they
usually create more waste as their over filled trucks end up littering the whole
area. The type of trucks they also use are not fit for the road, and when they
break down at a place, it’s a pity for people in such an area.”
Mr.
Sunday Ugwu, a civil servant, who described the services of PSP operators as unimpressive,
noted that although they pay the bills, their wastes are not evacuated.
“When
they manage to come and fill their dilapidated trucks beyond its capacity, half
of the refuse will end up in the street as they pass,” Mr. Ugwu added.
At
Yaba market, most traders blamed the PSP operators for the incessant closure of
the market. According to them, apart from Thursday officially set aside for cleaning
the market, traders clean their trading space after daily transactions.
“The
market was better off when we had to patronize cart pushers. Everyday, the market
union monitors the cleaning and ensures that all waste generated are moved to
a designated place for removal. However, because these people don’t come,
to evacuate the waste, we are being blamed for the untidy nature of the place”,
lamented one of the traders, who claimed that his stall had repeatedly come under
the hammer of the Ministry of the Environment.
However, Mr. Fola Adeyemi,
director of public affairs, Ministry of Environment came to the defence of the
PSP operators.
“Their services should be applauded rather than criticized”,
he enthused, adding: “Think of a scenario where Lagos State is overtaken
by refuse. That would be the situation if garbage were left unattended to. If
the PSP operators went on strike for one day, Lagos would experience an outbreak
of epidemic. This is because the amount of refuse generated by Lagos alone is
equivalent to that of three states. No system can claim perfection, but in term
of performance, PSP scores between 65-70 percent”, he reiterated.
Although
Mr. Adeyemi agreed that there is a problem with monitoring, he was quick to inform
Daily Sun that it would soon be a thing of the past.
“The operators
would be seriously monitored. The mentality of an average Nigerian entrepreneur
is that they don’t want to re-invest. This has led to the degeneration of
the trucks, as their owners are nonchalant about their state. We have blacklisted
some of them and already have their contracts terminated. There are also plans
to empower the diligent ones for optimum productivity”, Mr Adeyemi promised.
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