Congo Town Township Commissioner Alarms Over Sanitation Problem
By: Kormassa Maria Digen/Roosevelt Joshua
The Commissioner of the Township of Congo Town has alarmed over the growing threats facing his community due to drug abuse and poor sanitation.
Mr. Edward Horton Lahai is calling for urgent and collective efforts to address worsening situation as the rainy season draws near. In an interview with the Liberia Health and Journalists Network, Commissioner Lahai said these mounting public health and environmental crises caused by improper waste disposal requires urgent attention.
“What people don’t realize is that the waste they think they’ve thrown away ends up right back in the community. We’re sitting on our own waste—and it’s making our neighborhoods sick,” Commissioner Lahai said.
To combat the situation issues Commissioner Lahai said, the Township Authority through has initiated awareness campaigns collaborating with certified waste disposal groups to ensure proper disposal of waste. His office has at the same time set a community based sanitation team in all of the communities in Congo Town Township.
He said while this has led to improvement in some areas, more work needs to be done to make the community inhabitable for the residents.
Commissioner Lahai: “Sanitation is not just the government’s responsibility, it requires everyone participation. Clean communities don’t happen by chance-they are created by people who care enough to act.”
Commissioner Lahai noted that the seasonal flooding that the Township usually experience is due to lack of proper sanitation management, particularly clogged drainage.
According to him, concerted effort is needed to address the careless dumping of waste to enable free flow of drainages to prevent flooding.
“Lack of proper sanitation leads to flooding and flooding spreads sickness. We need to break that cycle together,” Commissioner Lahai said.
The Congo Town Township Commissioner said despite ongoing effort to improve drainage system, he expressed disappointment that the benefits are being undercut by some community members’ behaviors.
Commissioner Lahai also attracted the flooding situation in township to enclosure of the wetlands and urged residents to take ownership and join effort to prevent anything that could cause flooding.
