By Bill W. Cooper
Several aggrieved marketers of the Gobarchop Market in Red-light will today stage a major protest against the Paynesville City Cooperation (PCC) over its alleged refusal to remove the overstayed garbage from the market.
The aggrieved marketers through their Superintendent, Macklin Jallah, said they will converge at the Du-port Road and move towards the vicinity of the PCC to petition the government, noting that their decision to stage a protest is as the result of the Corporation’s delinquency in removing the mountainous dirt when in fact it is collecting money from them for said purpose.
Speaking to this paper over the weekend in an exclusive interview via mobile, Mr. Jallah amongst other things stressed that it baffled him to see that the PCC whose sole responsibility is to ensure that the various market places within Paynesville are clean is reneging on its responsibility.
According to him, the PCC under the leadership of Mayor Pam-Belcher Taylor and her team have been very insensitive to the plights of the marketers and other well-meaning Liberians and as such, the needs for their protest cannot be overemphasized.
He reiterated that the Gobarchop Market gives US$2,000 for the removal of dirt from the market and noted that the increased dirt in market is now posing serious danger to their health as well as their customers and other pedestrians.
Commenting on the seven-day work plan, the Gobarchop Market Superintendent admitted that the plan which was agreed by both parties was later defaulted by the PCC as a result of limited funding and damaged trucks.
“Everything they told you is a ‘blatant lie’ and has no iota of truth. Only three loads of trucks the PCC removed from the market of which residents and other marketers attested to, because the same day the work started, all of the three trucks they were using broke down,” he said.
Mr. Jallah further said, “What is more shocking is the continuous lies being spewed out by the PCC Public Relation Officer because the PCC collects municipal tax from marketers but there has been no strategic area prescribed as their dump site; yet they are still collecting taxes.
He wondered, “If they are not responsible to collect the dirt then what is the essence of them collecting the municipal tax or is it because of the crisis within the Liberia Marketing Association (LMA); so they want to take advantage of us?, but we will not sit and allow this to happen.”
Meanwhile, Mr. Jallah said he along with his team are opened to any dialog with the PCC Mayor to find a way forward to remedy the situation, averring, “I am willing to dialogue but it will be with the Mayor and not the PRO or the comptroller.”
Recently, it was brought to the attention of the media that the PCC has allegedly refused to remove the dirt for which US$2,000 was being collected by them from marketers, something which has led the marketers and community dwellers to engage in a planned protest.
Two weeks ago, several Liberians including marketers from various market places decried the ‘filthiness’ of Paynesville City and its environs, something which they said poses serious health threats to them.
Our reporter who tours several parts of the city observes that there continues to be stockpiles of garbage in the Red-Light Market, the ELWA Junction Market, Duport Road Junction and Paynesville Joe Bar, among others areas in Paynesville.
According to our reporter, several vehicles and pedestrians are still finding it very difficult to move freely as a result of the mountainous dirt across the city, adding that the odor oozing from the dirt is one thing that has now caught the attention of the marketers and other citizens.
But in reaction, the PCC’s Public Relations Officer, Jeremiah Diggen and Comptroller, Mally Ndorbor clarified that at no point in time did the Corporation ever receive said amount from the LMA or anybody to remove garbage from the Gobachop Market and has failed to remove it.
Investigation continues.