From Mark Chukwu, Umuahia
The Abia State Commissioner for Environment, Mr. Philemon Asọnye Ogbonna, has commended residents of Umuahia and its environs for what he described as a high level of compliance during the September monthly environmental sanitation exercise.
The commissioner made this known on Saturday, September 26, 2026, shortly after monitoring the exercise at the High Court Complex in Umuahia, where he addressed journalists alongside members of the sanitation monitoring team.
According to Asọnye, the exercise had experienced some irregularities in previous months due to various circumstances, but the September exercise recorded a significant improvement in public participation.
“Today is another monthly sanitation day. You can observe that for some time it has been very irregular because of one reason or the other. Today it has come and we have gone round with the monitoring team. I am particularly impressed,” he said.
The commissioner noted that enforcement agencies were present to support the Ministry of Environment during the exercise, adding that their presence contributed to effective monitoring and enforcement.
He, however, acknowledged that some isolated cases of non-compliance were still recorded in parts of the state.
“There is a high level of compliance, but I can tell you that there are some isolated cases of people not taking this environmental clean-up seriously,” Asọnye stated.
He particularly identified Orie Ụgba Market as an area where compliance with the sanitation exercise remained a concern. According to him, the ministry had repeatedly engaged the market leadership and warned traders about the need to participate fully in the exercise.
The commissioner said the government was working through the market’s leadership to improve compliance but warned that continued violations would attract stronger enforcement measures.
He disclosed that the government was considering stationing a sanitation court at the market during subsequent sanitation exercises to ensure that environmental offenders are prosecuted in accordance with the law.
“We are going through their leadership and we believe that the discussion we had with their leadership will bring about much more compliance. Nevertheless, a very good measure will be taken if they continue in such manner, as government will station a sanitation court in that market and ensure that they don’t go unpunished if they keep violating environmental laws,” he warned.
Asọnye also commended residents who voluntarily joined government efforts to maintain a clean environment.
He cited the Mgboko area of Afara, where some residents reportedly volunteered to support the government’s environmental sanitation efforts. He disclosed that the volunteers were confronted by some individuals opposed to the exercise, although the situation was peacefully brought under control.
The commissioner used the opportunity to remind Abia residents that environmental sanitation was not an exercise designed solely for government officials but a collective responsibility aimed at protecting the health and well-being of everyone.
He urged residents to dedicate the stipulated three hours of the monthly sanitation exercise to cleaning their surroundings and supporting government efforts to improve environmental conditions across the state.
“Let me also use this opportunity to advise ndị Abia that the clean-up the government is doing is for Abians, not for the government. It is not for a particular people; it is for everybody,” he said.
On the issue of flooding recently experienced in some parts of Abia, particularly Umuahia, Asọnye attributed some of the challenges to indiscriminate dumping of refuse in drainage channels and waterways.
He maintained that Abia has drainage infrastructure capable of helping to convey stormwater, but that human activities, particularly the dumping of waste into drains, can obstruct the free flow of water and worsen flooding.
The commissioner therefore appealed to residents to stop throwing refuse into gutters and drainage channels, especially during rainfall.
He warned that anyone caught deliberately blocking waterways or dumping refuse in drainage systems would face the full weight of environmental laws.
“We are still asking, requesting and demanding that people should not do that which will cause havoc in the environment. For instance, people take their waste during rain and go to pour it into the waterway,” he said.
According to him, the fact that offenders may escape detection does not mean that such activities are acceptable or will continue without consequences.
“They are doing it and going free because nobody has seen them. But if we see them, they will pay dearly for it,” he warned.
Asọnye further stated that the Abia State Government, through the appropriate environmental agencies, was intensifying efforts to keep drainage channels clean and reduce the risk of flooding.
He noted that the Abia State Environmental Protection Agency (ASEPA) and other relevant government bodies were working continuously to address environmental challenges across the state.
The commissioner called for greater cooperation from residents, stressing that environmental protection requires collective participation.
He urged Abians to see sanitation as a shared civic responsibility and to avoid activities capable of undermining government efforts to maintain clean communities, prevent flooding and protect public health.
The September sanitation exercise therefore ended with the government acknowledging improved compliance in several parts of Umuahia while issuing a fresh warning to persistent environmental offenders, particularly traders and residents who obstruct drainage systems or fail to participate in the mandatory sanitation exercise.
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