Monrovia, the capital of Liberia is one of the dirtiest cities in the country under the watch of Coalition of Democratic Change with Jefferson Koijee being the Mayor.
The unpleasant smell of the city is a direct threat to a healthy environment, leaving residents and foreign partners alike to live in such unhealthy city.
There are overspilled and burst culverts that are draining fecees (pupu water) and other messes in the city while there are also stockpile of dirt in bags, cartoons and some even swept by the wayside on major street corners including Benson and Gurley Streets; Mechlin and Water Streets as well as the infamous Broad Street and at the Rice Store, Caldwell Junction and Duala Market on the Bushrod Island.
An assessment carried out by this paper revealed that the drainage between Mechlin and Water Streets has been damaged over five years and the drainage Benson and Gurley Street has also been damaged since 2021.
Officials of the Monrovia City Corporation (MCC) and the Ministry of Public Works are aware of the dirt that has bad-smelled the city and the poor drainage system.
Beside the sting and bad smell of the city, some disadvantaged youths (Zogo’s) are on the other hand using various silent weapons to terrorize peaceful citizens for their belongings especially during the early morning and evening hours and these attacks are sometimes perpetrated in the presence of armless state security officers including the Monrovia City Police and Liberia National Police officers.
The lawless behaviors of these “Disadvantaged Youths” have made Monrovia impenetrable to many persons, especially women, who are their victims in most cases.
The Monrovia City Cooperation by its statues, is responsible to keep the city tidy and with the supervision of the LNP, help to maintain law and order in the city while on the contrary, the police officers have rather absorbed the functions of the traffic officers by arresting drivers of vehicles as well as tricycle and motorbike riders and requesting for their driver’s license and asking for bribes.
Residents of Monrovia as well as some international partners could not hold back their impression of a dirty Monrovia and called on the City Mayor to be more robust in ensuring that the city is cleaned to an appreciable standard.
Mayor Koijee has however acknowledged the dirt and sting of Monrovia, but blamed it on the lack of donor funding.
