Residents across Anambra, Enugu and Ebonyi have called on government authorities to enforce environmental sanitation laws more strictly to protect public health.
In interviews with reporters, residents urged authorities to address poor sanitation in the states.
A food vendor in Onitsha, Anambra, Mrs Veronica Umunna, said residents’ poor sanitation practices should be a major concern.
“You cannot believe that I remove human faeces from in front of my shop every morning. It makes me wonder where people’s consciences have gone.
“Many homeless people in Onitsha and other parts of the state defecate along roads, in drains and at refuse dumps without regard for public health.
“The government should crack down on these unsanitary practices by strictly enforcing relevant environmental and sanitation laws to safeguard public health,” she said.
A landlord in Onitsha, Chief Elvis Office, criticised residents’ poor sanitation practices and faulted local and state authorities for failing to curb them.
“People dump waste in drains, while many household soakaway pits overflow onto the streets when they fill up and are not emptied.
“This should prompt relevant authorities to conduct regular inspections, educate the public, and arrest, prosecute and punish offenders,” he said.
Anambra Commissioner for Environment, Dr Clem Aguiyi, acknowledged residents’ concerns and said the government was addressing the situation to prevent a breakdown of the system.
Aguiyi said plans were underway to recruit support staff to strengthen the ministry’s capacity, given the shortage of personnel in its sanitation and public health departments.
“We have few environmental health officers responsible for sanitary inspections. Most are based in local government areas as desk officers.
“The workload is enormous. For instance, some local government areas have fewer than six desk officers conducting inspections.
“However, the government cannot employ people without making provision for their salaries, operational mobility and other needs,” he said.
Enugu residents blamed the state’s poor environmental health conditions on underperformance and a lack of environmental health officers conducting on-the-spot inspections.
In interviews with reporters, residents said officers responded to complaints only when called, neglecting their inspection duties.
Miss Joy Eze, a shop owner in the Agbani Road area of Enugu, said officers often walked around the streets without carrying out their duties.
“The officers should be seen in people’s compounds, assessing environmental conditions and educating residents about the need for cleanliness,” she said.
A butcher at Garki Market in Enugu, Mr Okechukwu Ani, acknowledged the presence of environmental officers at the market’s abattoir but called for more inspections.
Ani said officers assessed the cleanliness of the environment, the use of protective clothing and the sanitary condition of work tools, among other things.
“This development keeps butchers at the abattoir on their toes, but we call for more frequent inspections because of the volume of activity at the facility,” he said.
Enugu Commissioner for Health, Prof. George Ugwu, said environmental health officers continued to perform their statutory duties.
Ugwu said the state government had stepped up efforts to make the department more effective and broaden its scope through the “One Health Approach”.
“The concept aims to bring human, animal and environmental health inspectors under one umbrella to improve effectiveness and coordination.
“Senior ministry officials are consulting with our partners and officials from the ministries of agriculture and agro-industrialisation, and the environment, among others.
“We will soon make the state uninhabitable for anyone engaging in activities that endanger human, animal and environmental health,” he said.
The Ebonyi government has recruited 22 environmental health workers in response to complaints about poor sanitation in the state.
The state Commissioner for Environment, Mr Sylvester Nwite, told reporters that the recruitment was intended to strengthen the workforce and improve sanitation across the state.
Nwite said the officers’ duties included promoting environmental and personal hygiene, providing health education and public information, and inspecting surroundings to ensure cleanliness.
The ministry’s Head of Environmental Health Services, Mrs Jacinta Uzoke, said the officers had the authority to seal premises where owners failed to comply with environmental health directives.
“Officers first visit affected areas to identify environmental nuisances. They then issue abatement notices specifying the nuisance and its location.
“Offenders are given a set period to comply. Those who fail to do so are taken to court for prosecution.
“Structural nuisances involving buildings and other physical structures usually take longer to address, while non-structural nuisances involving common human-related offences require shorter abatement periods,” she said.
The Chairman of the Kpirikpiri Market Butchers Association in Abakaliki, Mr Jonathan Nwali, called for more inspections at abattoir slaughtering and meat-selling points.
Nwali said inspectors had directed butchers to stop using vehicle tyres to roast meat because of the harmful effects on the meat.
“Environmental cleanliness is everyone’s responsibility, and no effort should be spared in achieving it,” he said.
