We didn’t ask residents to drop refuse on medians, roadsides —Oyo govt

Oyo State Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Mr Isaac Ishola, on Thursday, said the state government never promulgated any policy to the effect that residents of the state were permitted to dump their refuse on median stripes or by roadsides.

Stating this on Thursday, Ishola said there was no such policy, whether pronounced or written, describing such manner of disposing refuse as illegal and an aberration.

According to him, the state’s sanitation and waste control regulation 2013, No. 6 Vol 38, Section 4, prohibited anyone against dropping litter anywhere expect as statutorily provided by the state government.

Ishola enjoined residents of the state to register with state accredited waste collectors for their waste disposal.

He said the state government was all out to ensure enforcement of sanitation regulations and would arrest persons caught disposing refuse on median stripes, through the setting up of environmental mobile courts to try offenders.

“There is no policy either written or pronounced that people should drop litter on the street or on median stripes. Our sanitation and waste control regulation, 2013, No. 6 Vol 38, Section 4 captioned under prohibition, states that nobody is allowed to drop litter anywhere except where provided for by the government.

“This means that what you see on the street is illegal. We have started and will fight it. In fact, it is an aberration. Government spends a lot to evacuate waste. Whoever generates waste must account for its disposal. Residents of the state should register with particular waste collector for their waste disposal. We have accredited waste collectors. We have urged waste collectors to register with the Oyo State Waste Management Authority.”

“However, we understand that there are illegal private waste collectors who collect waste and dispose at unapproved sites. We will ensure that we arrest such illegal collectors. We believe that we will ensure enforcement with the setting up of 10 environmental mobile courts and tribunal.”

Speaking on government’s measures at preventing the occurrence of flood disaster in Ibadan, the state capital, as forecasted by the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA), he praised residents of the state for yielding to warnings about proper waste disposal.

He also attributed the ability of the state government to mitigate flooding to the dredging of rivers, unblocking of drainages.

Ishola hinted further that the state government would weld seven bridges, to prevent occurrence of flooding, in years to come.