Residents Lament Poor Sanitation In Taraba

Residents of Jalingo, the capital of Taraba State, have lamented the poor sanitary condition of the state and the silence of the agencies involved in the exercise.

Jalingo in time past has practiced the sanitation culture religiously, making Jalingo one of the cleanest cities in the zone. This culture has however eroded.

THEWILL correspondent recently toured parts of the state capital and discovered that with refuse dumps littering most of the major roads and streets, the sanitary condition of Jalingo begs the urgent attention of the Taraba State Government.

Jalingo residents who spoke with THEWILL lamented the poor sanitation in the state capital. One of them, Mrs Sarah Mudwa, said, “No capital city should look this untidy, but here we are. I know it is not the job of the government alone, but we cannot do it on our own. When we tidy our environment, we expect that government agencies involved should make provision for the disposal refuse in other places different from residential areas. Also if the government sets aside a day for a general and compulsory sanitation exercise, as it is done in many other states, it will give people time to come out and clean their environment.”

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Another resident, Mr Duamanang Peter, said it was the duty of the state government to draw up a plan for waste disposal in the state capital.

He said, “I agree that it is not the duty of the government alone to clean up the environment, but when we do our bit, where do we dispose the waste? This is where the government comes in. Government should make available sanitation trucks or set up agencies that will help us to evacuate and properly dispose refuse.”

A resident, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, noted: “A couple of years ago, some people were hired by the government to clean up Jalingo. Trash bins were deposited in strategic places and sanitation trucks moving around to evacuate refuse from residential houses and offices. This culture kept the city clean for a while before they stopped working. Nowadays nothing is being done about the sanitary condition of the city and refuse end up in places where they shouldn’t be.

“Look at that area behind the roadblock park and that Mile 6 area that leads to the bypass, for example. These places shouldn’t look the way they are looking right now. Something needs to be done urgentl, if you ask me.”

When contacted, the Ministry of Urban Development declined comment on the matter.

Meanwhile, in a telephone interview with THEWILL, the Senior Special Adviser to the Taraba state Governor, Mr Bala Dan Abu, said the state government was working towards maintaining proper sanitation in Jalingo.

“I do not agree with your observation that sanitation has stopped in Jalingo. We have the impression that Jalingo is one of the cleanest cities in the country. There are places for depositing rubbish, but if you move through the city, the major areas are clean.

“I am not aware of some of these things you have said, but if that is the case, the people themselves have to be part of the process of cleaning the city. If people don’t participate, they are not helping the government,” Dan Abu said.

He however enjoined the citizens to complement the government’s efforts by also playing their part through tidying up their immediate environment.