By Paul Nwosu
There is a brand new gear in waste management in Anambra State. Governor Charles Chukwuma Soludo’s well-articulated manifesto in turning Anambra State into a liveable and prosperous clean and green land has been given new pep and drive through the new directions in waste management put in place by the government.
The managing director and CEO of Anambra State Waste Management Agency (ASWAMA), Sir Mike Ozoemena, stresses without mincing words that open dumping of refuse is now anathema in Anambra State. Soludo leads the charge by insisting that the earlier impunity of keeping the environment dirty is fizzling out for good. According to Ozoemena, “Everywhere in the world, the municipal councils are faced with dealing with waste management and refuse disposal.”
Anambra has thus put the waste management process in the hands of the local government authorities to deal with according to their diverse circumstances. For instance, refuse in Onitsha South cannot be the same as the one in Ayamelum LGA.
Ever since the October 1 deadline, Ozoemena stresses that there is now zero tolerance for communal dumping of refuse in Anambra State. The correct procedure is for the people to bag their refuse and place it in front of their homes for prompt collection and onward disposal. The erstwhile eyesore of heaping mountains of refuse on the major streets of cities like Awka, Onitsha, Nnewi and Ekwulobia can no longer be tolerated. It is evident that considerable progress has been made in this regard. The concomitant danger of offensive odour oozing from the dumpsites that may lead to the outbreak of diseases has been done away with.
It is incumbent on the local governments to engage the assigned contractors in dealing with the waste or using direct labour in the local communities, as the case may be.
The significant improvement in refuse evacuation across the state makes it imperative for Ndi-Anambra across board to pay the requisite ASWAMA fees promptly.
ASWAMA has duly released updated rates for Ndi-Anambra. The hardworking ASWAMA squad, led by Sir Mike Ozoemena, has provided new rates that are quite affordable. The state government, therefore, expects full compliance by the people to ensure that it has enough money to clear every street and locality of refuse. More waste collection trucks are being procured and fuelled to meet the increasing workload. Waste bins are also being purchased and placed at strategic locations across the state for effective waste collection and management.
The new rates payable by the households are classified according to local governments in the ranges of rural, semi-urban and urban.
As the regulation stands, Awka South, Onitsha North, Onitsha South, Aguata, Nnewi North, Idemili North and Ogbaru are the local governments in the urban category. Njikoka, Idemili-South, Ihiala, Awka North, Oyi, Orumba North, Orumba South, Anaocha, Nnewi South, Dunukofia, and Anambra East are grouped in the semi-urban local government category, while Ayamelum, Anambra West and Ekwusigo are in the rural category in ASWAMA classification.
It is a mark of the determination of the government to maintain an excellent environment that the Soludo administration is leaving no stone unturned to ensure effective adherence to the monthly sanitation exercise.
The drive towards prompt and effective clearing of drains and wastes, and their collection and evacuation led the government to engage contractors in waste management in the state to ensure the actualisation of the promised Smart Megacity. This commitment is contributory to Anambra’s surefooted efforts to be turned into an A state as “The Light of the Nation.”
The government has thusly divided the state into 31 constituencies to enable each of the engaged contractors focus on each of the constituencies. The onus is now on landlords, tenants, market leaders, schools and churches to team up with the state government in sensitising and mobilising residents and indigenes on the need for a clean and healthy environment. The government needs all the support of Ndi-Anambra and other residents to make the lofty mark. It is with the guaranteed support of the people that the achievement of the proposed smart and liveable mega-city-state is possible.
For the avoidance of doubt, all deviants will pay the price as the government cannot afford to sit idly by and watch anybody, no matter how highly placed, sabotage the due process by not obeying law and order.
•Sir Paul Nwosu is commissioner for information, Anambra State