The Liberia Water and Sewage Corporation (LWSC) says it is overwhelmed by the misuse of the sewage system in the country especially in Monrovia.
Since the end of the civil war in Liberia, the nation’s capital has not got its pre-war status due to heavy stock pile of dirt and the overflowing of drainages in the city center, which have led to media institution, like the Inquirer Newspaper, reminding the requisite institutions, through the government to do the needful and keep the city clean.
According to the Deputy Managing Director for Technical Services, McArthur Hilton, the LWSC is finding it difficult to maintain and keep drainages around Monrovia clean due to the use of drainages as dumpsites by some residents.
Mr. Hilton observed that instead of using MCC designated sites to dispose garbage, some residents are comfortably using sewages to dispose of their garbage, something, he said poses serious health to the very people themselves.
He made the statement on Thursday, February 2, 2022, when the LWSC cleaned the main drainage between Benson and Gurley Streets in Monrovia.
“We are cleaning all the drainages around Monrovia, including the main Soniwein drainage,” Mr. Hilton noted.
“It is hard for us, because, when we clean the drainage, some people come at night and remove the coverts only to throw dirts,” he said pointing to stockpile of dirt including bottles, plastic and other non-disposable item taken from the drainage.
The LWSC DMD told the Inquirer in an exclusive interview that many persons residing in the city center are not helping to keep Monrovia tidy.
He maintained that while keeping the city clean is the job of the LWSC, many government institutions, including the Monrovia City Corporation (MCC) and the Liberia National Police are also under obligation to keep the city clean but are not doing much to enforce city ordinances and the law to punish violators.
“It is our job to keep the city clean, but all government institutions should also help in the process,” the LWSC DMD stressed.
During the rainy season, main drainages around Monrovia, including the Soniwein overflow with feces, thereby giving the entire central Monrovia an unpleasant odor.
Meanwhile, a Representative aspirant Emmanuel Dahn said sanitation is a very cardinal and challenged issue in the district and other parts of Liberia that needs to be addressed in the most collective ways by all citizens.
He said the situation at the Benson Gurley Streets intersection was a serious hazard that was caused by the same community residents and others that were not doing justice the drainage system.
“We have this situation that is affecting all of us everywhere in this district and other parts of Liberia; if we residents work together collectively and stop throwing garbage in the community anyhow, this will not occur,” he said.
Dahn reported that the Liberia Water and Sewer Cooperation is challenged to undertake the country waste matters financially so the government has to assist through budgetary allotment in the opening of blocked drainages around Liberia.
According to him, the lack of funding at the Corporation will raise more situations because the required resources to conduct cleaning routine is lacking.
He added, “We have these as a priority in our manifesto; the LWSC will get our full support before and after our election to the district leadership and we will always try to save our people by giving them good sanitation and health programs.”
