By Admin
The Cross River State Government has banned daytime refuse dumping across Calabar metropolis, enforcing a strict policy that restricts waste disposal to between 6:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. daily.
The directive, part of Governor Bassey Otu’s urban renewal and environmental sanitation agenda, aims to curb the escalating menace of indiscriminate dumping and overcrowded refuse sites which have become a major health and environmental concern in the city.
Speaking during an enforcement and public sensitization campaign in Calabar on Tuesday, the Special Adviser to the Governor on General Duties, Ekpenyong Akiba, emphasized the administration’s determination to maintain a clean and livable urban space through consistent and coordinated waste management strategies.
“This policy is a deliberate effort to address unregulated dumping of waste, which endangers both our environment and the wellbeing of our people,” Akiba stated.
He explained that the evening-only waste disposal window will enable waste management agencies to coordinate prompt nighttime evacuation, ensuring that residents wake up to a cleaner city every morning.
Enforcement of the policy is being led by the Calabar Urban Development Authority (CUDA) in collaboration with other sanitation agencies, with officials fanning out across major streets, markets, and residential areas in Calabar South and Calabar Municipality to educate residents and ensure compliance.
While stressing the community-oriented approach of the current campaign, Akiba noted that violators would be prosecuted under relevant environmental sanitation laws.
“We are not just sensitizing the public; we are also enforcing the law. Going forward, anyone found dumping refuse outside the approved time will face the consequences,” he warned.
The “People First” administration of Governor Otu has made sanitation a top priority, pledging to reposition Calabar as one of Nigeria’s cleanest and most attractive state capitals — a reputation it once enjoyed-Akiba added.
