MONROVIA- Gobachop Market, one of the biggest commercial hub in Liberia is being gradually webbed away by garbage thus posing health hazards and respiratory problem to citizens in the surrounding.
About three months now, huge piles of dirt have been seen at major places with little or no efforts by Liberia Marketing Association (LMA) and the Paynesville City Corporation (PCC) to remedy the situation in spite of taxes collected from Marketers.
The LMA collects fees of twenty Liberian dollars from Marketters on a daily basis to collect dirt and upkeep market, an obligation which LMA has since failed to meet.
This forced residents of the Gobachop Market to stage a violent protest over the weekend as a means of suppressing LMA to have PCC remove the garbage which they believed is endangering their health.
The protest brought normal activities of the market to a standstill as marketers most of whom converged from different parts of the country to sell their goods were prevented by the residence.
Marketers themselves after realizing that the protest was in all of the interest.
Remarking during the protest, Eddie Z. Flomo, one of the residents who organized the protest, noted that they (residents) of the area had on numerous occasions called LMA’s attention to the situation, but the Association has since failed to meet up with their promise which they could no longer bear thus giving them reasons to protest sine it was the easier ways to community.
Flomo mentioned that it was important for citizens to get involved because the dirt is posing serious health threats to those living in the close proximity of the garbage sites.
When inquired as to how community dwellers are managing their dirt, he explained that LMA through its security collects money from the residence to throw their garbage away.
Similarly; LMA authorities claimed to have paid over two thousand (US 2,000.00) United States dollars to PCC to remove the garbage, but to no avail as PCC complained of the lack of equipment.
Superintendent Meline B. Jallah of the Gobachop market said the amount was paid to PCC about three months now, but the corporation is yet to collect the garbage due to challenges confronting the institution.
Jallah disclosed that LMA was also contemplating on staging similar protest to pressure the institution to meet up with its obligation of collecting dirt.
She said, “We are also disenchanted, we paid money. When they come they will just collect one or two trucks claiming they do not have equipment.”
Lydia W. Toweh, who sells plantains said, “I have been selling on Gobachop field for over 15 years and we have always faced problem with the waste. LMA only comes to collect ground fees and ticket money from us to take the garbage. We are sick and tire of this garbage and are possing sicknesses to us.”
She said marketing authority are only interested in collecting the daily fees, but care less about the huge stockpile of garbage which is posing health threat to their lives everyday
“Every morning and evening they are here collecting ground fees and issuing us ticket, but the dirt have made mountain,” she intoned.
When contacted, Paynesville City Corporation (PCC) Public Relations Officer, Jeremiah Diggen said they are working with LMA to remove the garbage at Gobachop market, but denied receiving the two thousand United States dollars mentioned by Superintendent Jallah.
Diggen linked the failure of the PCC in collecting the garbage from Gobachop Market to damage excavator at the wein town landfill.
Comments are closed.