Residents and traders in the Panseke area, Abeokuta South Local Government Area of Ogun State, are lamenting the current state of the pedestrian bridge in the area which is believed to be one of the longest in Nigeria.
PUNCH Metro reports that the bridge, which was a centre of attraction when it was constructed by the administration of former Governor Ibikunle Amosun, is currently in a bad state.
The bridge’s current sorry state was caused by indiscriminate dumping of waste as well as open defecation.
When PUNCH Metro visited the bridge on Tuesday, our correspondent observed that some parts of the bridge were littered with waste packed in different polythene bags and human faeces.
Our correspondent learnt that the stench emanating from the bridge, especially after rainfall, had forced people to abandon it.
A trader, Ismat Abdulsalam, attributed the open defecation on the bridge to those she described as homeless children always seen taking shelter on the bridge.
Abdulsalam said, “This issue of open defecation has become a recurring problem, and most times when rain falls, it washes down the faeces, leaving us at the mercy of the stench oozing out of the faeces and placing traders at the risk of contracting diseases.
“What I have observed is that there are some children who use to sleep on this bridge, and in most cases, they are responsible for defecation on the bridge.
“There are also some school children who use this bridge and are also responsible for defecating on the bridge. I have caught them several times.”
Also speaking to our correspondent, a resident who identified himself simply as MoniMoni, said some pedestrians always defecate on the bridge at night.
“I have observed that the act is usually perpetuated at night as many individuals use the bridge at night. Aside from the issue of open defecation, there is also the issue of some secondary school pupils engaging in public brawls, using cutlasses to threaten one another and not minding if they fall from the bridge,” he said.
He said the problem persisted because of the failure of the government to apprehend and punish perpetrators.
A commercial driver at the Panseke Garage, who spoke on condition of anonymity, noted that the issue had become worrisome for the transport union in the area which had in most cases employed the services of cleaners to clean some sections of the bridge.
Contacted, the Press Officer, Ogun State Ministry of Environment, Modupe Salabiu, said the ministry was aware of the problem and was doing everything possible to put an end to it.
She said the state government planned to construct public toilets in strategic areas of the state to stop open defecation.
Salabiu said, “The Ministry of Environment is doing its best to enlighten the public on the health hazards of open defecation through television and radio jingles.
“Similarly, the state government, through the Ministry of Rural Development, is building public toilets in every part of the state but some unscrupulous elements in our society are not making use of the public toilets.”
Efforts to get the reaction of the Chairman of the Abeokuta South Local Government Area, Omolaja Majekodunmi, proved abortive as calls and messages sent to his line were not responded to as of the time of filing this report.
