By our reporter
The Plateau State Environmental Protection and Sanitation Agency (PEPSA) on Saturday convicted 22 environmental sanitation offenders and warned that illegally erected structures blocking drainage channels across Jos would be demolished if owners failed to remove them, as the state intensified efforts to curb flooding and prevent disease outbreaks.
The convictions were secured by a Mobile Sanitation Court during the state’s monthly environmental sanitation exercise, which covered Gadan Bako, Nasarawa Filing Ball, Kongo-Russia and Yan Tire Junction in Jos North Local Government Area.
The exercise, which featured house-to-house inspections, drainage clearance and enforcement operations, exposed widespread environmental violations, including indiscriminate dumping of refuse, illegal construction of kiosks and shops on drainage channels, and defiance of the restriction of movement imposed during the sanitation period.
Speaking after monitoring the exercise, the Director of Administration of PEPSA, Mr. Izang Pate, who represented the Director-General, Mr. Samuel Dapiya, lamented poor compliance in several communities despite sustained public sensitisation campaigns.
According to him, although many residents maintained clean homes, blocked drainage channels filled with refuse remained a major environmental and public health concern.
“Although most households maintained clean premises, we discovered that much drainage were blocked with garbage, exposing communities to cholera, malaria and other environmental health hazards,” Pate said.
He urged residents to embrace environmental sanitation as a daily responsibility rather than an activity observed only during the monthly exercise.
Pate also warned landlords and business owners against erecting structures on drainage channels, saying the agency would not hesitate to enforce the law.
“Owners and landlords must immediately remove all illegal structures obstructing drainage channels or risk demolition and prosecution. Our enforcement teams will return to ensure full compliance.”
The monitoring team reported poor compliance at Gadan Bako and Nasarawa Filing Ball, where some residents and traders ignored the restriction of movement by carrying out commercial activities during the sanitation exercise.
Officials also discovered that several drainage channels in the affected communities, including Kongo-Russia, had been obstructed by illegally erected structures, leading to waste accumulation and poor water flow.
At Yan Tire Junction, a PEPSA payloader evacuated heaps of construction sand dumped along drainage channels, which officials said had caused sedimentation and increased the risk of flash flooding in parts of the Jos metropolis.
Presiding over the Mobile Sanitation Court, Chief Magistrate Yop Hannatu Ahoms disclosed that 22 offenders were convicted and fined for violating Plateau State’s environmental sanitation regulations.
She said stricter enforcement had become necessary to discourage persistent violations of sanitation laws.
“Stiffer sanctions have become necessary to deter residents who deliberately violate sanitation regulations by moving about or engaging in commercial activities during the sanitation exercise,” Ahoms said.
A resident of Kongo-Russia, Mr. Muslim Sa’ad, commended the agency for the thorough inspection but urged PEPSA to deepen collaboration with traditional institutions, Community Development Associations and other grassroots groups to improve public participation.
The agency reaffirmed its commitment to sustaining environmental sanitation across Plateau State, calling on traditional rulers, community leaders and residents to take greater ownership of their environment to reduce flooding improve sanitation and protect public health.
