The Ogun State Chairman of the Association of Waste Managers of Nigeria, Pastor Jolaoluwa Emmanuel has lamented a staggering sum of N650m bridging allowance the state government owed the waste managers.
Emmanuel disclosed that the refusal of the state government to clear this huge debt despite several appeal letters has not only hampered their efficiency but has equally sent over 100 operators and hundreds of workers out of jobs.
He explained that while the state government owes the waste managers 18 months’ bridging allowance for general refuse disposal totalling over N450m, the highway operators who he said are in charge of managing public waste dumped across the highways in the state have a backlog of four months running which is over N200m.
The AWMN chairman also lamented the state of the dumpsites across the state saying that many of them are in terrible form making it difficult to access them with their refuse disposal vehicles and should as a matter of priority be fixed before the rainy season begins.
Jolaoluwa disclosed this on Wednesday at a press briefing held at the secretariat of the association at Adigbe, Abeokuta.
He said “While we want to appreciate Governor Dapo Abiodun for doing so much to take Ogun State from being one of the dirtiest to the cleanest since he came to power in May 2019, we also want to say that as much as we have been instrumental in achieving this milestone, we are however getting frustrated with the backlog of 18 months bridging payment of over N450m that the government is owing us.
“The bridging payment is a result of the fact that not many people pay for the disposal of their refuse, some see it as pure responsibility of the government or part of the dividends of democracy. So, government make this bridging payment to make up for this shortfall
“This backlog is from September 2022 and each time we wrote the government, it has been promise upon promises which were never fulfilled. We used to be over 200 operators but we are now less than 100 because many could no longer cope with the hardship.
He added that many waste managers are presently sick while some battle to pay their banks back because of some facilities they have collected to enhance their performance.
“Those who also help in taking care of the public waste on our highways too are being owed four months running which is over N200m. We are not finding things easy at all because the cost of operations has gone astronomically high. A litre of diesel is now N1500, what do we say of the cost of spare parts and tyres?
“Our efficiency is being challenged, we have tried to be patient till now but we may be forced out of business if we don’t have capital to work with. The dumpsites across the state are also not in good condition, the government should please help with the repairs of these dumpsites before the rain begins fully.
“We are using this medium to appeal to Gov Abiodun to please help us out, the suffering is so much but we can’t bear it anymore,” he added.
Speaking with newsmen, the Commissioner for Environment, Mr Ola Oresanya said that the government is aware of the predicament of the waste managers and is already taking steps to ensure they are paid in a matter of days.
Oresanya said, “we are aware of the pains of waste collectors, which can be attributed to the astronomical increase in fuel prices and the high cost of vehicle spare parts.
“All these resulted in the high operation cost, and we have been avoiding the burden transfer to the public through the increase in waste collection charges.
“The government is aware of these challenges, and we are working seriously to address the issue. I am sure the PSP operators will have reasons to smile very soon. It’s a reflection of the prevailing social-economic landscape, which I believe will yield a positive dividend with the various intervention strategies by the government.
He appealed to them to remain calm and be steadfast as a major partner in public hygiene programmes of the state.
