Edo Govt launches MEGA Clean up
… collaborates with stakeholders to achieve hitch-free excercise.
The Edo State Governor, Mr Godwin Obaseki has assured the people of his administration’s commitment to provide enabling environment for businesses to thrive in the state, noting that his MEGA agenda was make Edo the most cleanest state in the country.
The clean up MEGA exercise which took place across the Benin metropolis area of Edo State was led by the Commissioner for Environment and Sustainability, Architect Joshua Omokhodion along with a team of health officials from the Oredo Local Government Area, the Waste Management Board, National Union of Road Transport Workers and the Tipper Drivers Association of Nigeria among others.
While speaking to journalists after the exercise, the Commissioner said the exercise was targeted towards ensuring Edo State became the hub of environmental cleanliness. “We are starting with Oredo, the host Local Government Area . This first phase is a pilot scheme and a general model for the entire state. First to ensure that there is Monday to Monday cleaning of all the markets across the state.”
“However, we would graduate into monthly environmental sanitation excercise .The idea is that Mr Godwin Obaseki said in the year 2030, Edo State would become a destination where people live in good health and their general wellbeing would be guaranteed. He thought that the only way to achieve this is to start a programme that makes Edo State as habitable as possible unlike what it used to be in the past.”
Omokhodion, while urging the people to participate actively in the excercise thanked the Tipper Drivers’ Association of Nigeria ,Edo State chapter and the National Union of Road Transport Workers, Edo State Council (NURTW) for their collaboration in the provision of additional trucks to support the evacuation of debris in some of the areas visited.
The General Manager , Edo State Waste Management Board (ESWMB), Charles Imariagbe said the excercise was timely which according to him was a re-enactment of the early Monday Market Cleaning excercise which the state used to embark upon around business premises and market areas.
“We called it re-enactment because we once had that practice in the past. lt is going to be a routine excercise between the hours of 7:00AM to 09:00AM every Monday morning .”
The Waste Management boss noted that trucks were designated to Siluko in Egor Local Government Area, Oregbeni and Ramat Park axis as well as other far-reaching locations within the Benin metropolis to ensure a hitch-free sanitation excercise.
According to him, ” lt is one of the mandates of Mr Governor, Godwin Obaseki to see that Edo State becomes one of the cleanest states in the country. Therefore, we are telling the people to take responsibility by participating actively in the excercise. Stressing that going forward, the taskforce is going to reach out to traders , ensure compliance and create awareness of the consequences of violating the environmental laws.”
The Head of Local Government Administration, Oredo area of Edo State, Mr. Kensington Osifo who admonished the people to abide by the environmental laws in ensuring that they clean up their environment said the administration of Governor Godwin Obaseki was very sensitive to the plight of the people, adding that there was need to join hands with him in cleaning up the state .
He, however, warned perpetrators to desist from the act of uncleanliness especially using public places as defecation and other ungodly act .
