AN OPEN LETTER TO THE AG. CHAIRMAN OKENE LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA COUNCIL

 

Okene’s un-cleanliness has become one of the most talked about topics among citizens in Ebiraland, as the state suffers from both land pollution and Poor water supply. I did a thorough analysis on the state’s water supply and took the time to tour most of the State’s Local Government Areas. I must say I was extremely disappointed with the results I got.

I have rated Okene as the dirtiest Local Government Area in Kogi State, Not only are the surfaces unclean and preoccupied with litter and open defecations, but also saying that the water supply was just unclean would be an understatement. During my stay there, I interviewed one of the occupants living in uruvucheba (Which got the highest score in terms of dirtiness, according to our clean-up crew) in Okene LGA of Kogi State and I was made to know that the inhabitants have no other choice than to turn to Grey and Brownish water as an alternative source of H2o. We are all well aware of the fact that all humans need clean water to live healthily and that everyone is entitled to a healthy life, but unfortunately

In Okene, clean water is scarce, even the pure water companies are performing poorly, in fact I would not call it pure water since they do contain floating particles and enzymes, this poses as a treat to the society, because using contaminated water can cause diseases such as Diarrhea, Cholera, Dysentery, Typhoid, Polio etc. Contaminated drinking water is as good as poisoning, as it is estimated to cause about 485.000 diarrheal deaths each year.\

I will assume the state government has not been aware of this, since the situation is only worsening by the day and nothing has been done about this, people have died while some are presently ill. How long will this agony go on? Not only is the water supply in this Local Government Area outrageous, the streets and other public areas like markets, schools compounds, garages, hospitals, business areas, even the secretariat and so on, are unclean thus germ-filled.

I took a look at Bariki Market in Okene, and I was so stunned by the view, I couldn’t locate a single clean spot, even the local Government secretariat looked more irritating than an indisposed trash bin, dirt were spotted all around the veranda. I was more shocked when I saw a few hospitals in that same LGA. It seemed to me like most of the hospitals were built on a dump site and we are all aware that improper disposal of medical waste can cause several diseases such as: Parasitic infections, Lung infections, Skin infections, HIV/Hepatitis B/C Viruses, Candida, meningitis Etc. I also visited several Government schools in Okene during my tour, expecting nothing less than a thoroughly clean compound since it was a school after all and children were involved, but I was shocked when I saw the school ground, there were so many un-disposed piles of trash laying around the school, and open defacation were all around the school compound, it was treacherous honestly. I called the attention of one of the teachers and I was told that the school had no public toilet which was why the students did what they did, risking getting infected.

Sadly Okene is an under developed area with no basic facilities like public toilets, trash truck and not even a dumping site, with its people poorly educated on the dangers of living in an untidy environment, so the people there consider everywhere to be a dump site.

This is not a new topic this has been going on for years now, and I must say it hurts to know that we are risking our lives everyday just by stepping out of our houses. Please the government should hire a clean-up crew and also encourage the people to go into weekly sanitation. So our streets can be ridded of litter. Thank you!

Islamiya Yakubu written from Okene