43 defaulters arrested during Abia sanitation exercise

43 persons were arrested and brought before a mobile Sanitation court in Umuahia on Saturday, during the March 2024, cleanup exercise in the State.

The defaulters, who were picked from different parts of the State capital, were arrested for loitering or conducting businesses during the 7-10 a.m. environmental period, in contravention of extant laws, and were brought to the Abia State Ministry of Environment in Umuahia.

Speaking to journalists after the cleanup, Abia State Commissioner for Environment, Mr. Philomen Asonye Ogbonna, lamented that some residents of the State have continued to constitute themselves as social deviants by sabotaging the Abia State government’s efforts in cleaning up the State.

Ogbonna, however, expressed satisfaction that this month’s environmental cleanup recorded improved participation, even as more resources and equipment were deployed to scoop and cart away refuse.

Also speaking to journalists, the member representing Ohafia South in the Abia State House of Assembly, Kalu Mba Nwoke, frowned upon some security agents who indulged in private transport business during the cleanup hours, even when they were not above the law.

He cautioned such officers to respect Abia State environmental laws by being law enforcers, not law breakers.

The Special Adviser on Environment to Abia State Governor, Professor Ijeoma Iheukwumere, warned Abia residents against blocking their gutters as the rains set in, stating that blocked drainage contributes to flood disasters.

43 defaulters arrested during Abia sanitation exercise