By Moses B. Cole
The stench from uncollected garbage sends a visitor to the Redlight market area in Monrovia’s Paynesville suburb wondering how hundreds of sellers are able to cope. Regular clearing of garbage is a persistent abnormally.
But some marketers in the biggest commercial district of RedLight have repeted alarmed over a huge stock piled of garbage that liter the area for days and week, something they say is harming them in many ways.
Speaking in separate interviews, some marketers have expressed fear that this is posing serious health hazards for them, as they are forced to eat and drink in this sort of foul environment as they go about their daily business transctions.
According to the head of the Block E area at the Red Light, Anthony F. Tamba, the presence of the dirt is causing some serious health problems for them, in addition to preventing some customers from buying their goods amidst the outpouring of flies which spread diseases.
“For more than two weeks, the dirt has not been removed which is causing a lot of health problems and also scaring away our customers because of the huge presence of flies,” Tamba told this reporter recently.
He added that the Paynesville City Corporation (PCC) does very little when it comes to getting rid of the dirt and that they are not even regular.
Another marketer at the Redlight Elizabeth Johnson, who sells fried plantain and fish, complained that the filthiness of the area is hurting her business, as it turns away many buyers. As a result, she said, her business is declining thus putting hardship on her and her family.
“Because of the dirt, people who used to buy from me are no longer buying from me, and by this I’m losing. And things are becoming hard for me and my family, ” the struggling petty business woman moaned.
Redlight market Table Director, Mohammed Menfelleh came in defense of his Marketing association which receive daily collection from each marketer, saying that where the garbage is doesn’t fall within the area limit of the Liberia Marketing Association. He said he could therefore not speak much about but acknowledged that the perennial problem of uncollected garbage was posing health hazard and needed to be removed.
When contacted, the Public Relation Director at the Paynesville City Corporation (PCC) Jani K. Jallah acknowledged the presence of the garbage and said that it’s the corporation’s responsibility to get rid of the garbage.
However she spoke of lots of constraints facing the PCC, something she said is from time to time being responsible for the stockpile of garbage.
Among other things, Ms. Jallah cited the fire out-break at the Wein Town dump site, the lack of logistics and low budgetary allotment, as other constraints facing the PCC. But she has assured that the garbage would be removed in the shortest possible time.
“Some constrains facing the corporation include the lack of logistics (trucks) to removed the garbage daily and those we use are all hire trucks (fees per truck 300 -350 USD daily)and also low budgetary allotment”, she said.
The Paynesville City Corporation spokeswoman further stressed the importance of the citizens’ responsibilities in the gathering and disposing of garbage so as to help maintain a healthy environment.
Both Liberian law and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) upholds the people’s right to live in healthy environment.
Article 25a of the UDHR ) states: ”Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family,” while Article 8 of the Liberian constitution states that, “ the Republic shall direct its policy towards ensuring for all citizens without discrimination, opportunities for employment and livelihood under just and humane conditions, and towards promoting safety, health and welfare facilities in employment.”
Moses B. Cole is a Journalism student at the University of Liberia Mass Communication Department doing Human Rights Reporting.