By By: Alphanso G. Kalama;
Paynesville – The Whein Telecom Community residents who explained their ordeal to reporter recently narrated that 85%of their income are spent on treating sicknesses they consistently encounter as a result of reckless waste that are transported near their respective homes.
Oretha Jefferson, a mother of six children conveyed that she and her kids sleep among rat, mosquitoes, cockroaches, snakes, flies and other harmful creatures that are generated from the garbage.
“my children and myself drink from that well (borehole), it smells a lot with all kind of small small things inside, we buy our own chlorine, but not all the time because we can’t afford” she added.
Resident Oretha have spend ten years in the Whein Town, Telecom Community, but said she has only received mosquito net three times under government’s initiative. According to her, relocation from the community hasn’t been an option for them, recounting that she and her husband bought their land and build their house in the area when the maintenance of the garbage was in good state.
Jatu Fahnbulleh and Eve Kai who both share the same roof, narrated that life has been unbearable for them since their entry into the community, emphasizing on the lack of save drinking water due to the contamination caused by the waste, inadequate provision of Mosquitoes Nets.
“if we knew, we couldn’t move here, imagine weather day or night, we don’t sit outside to eat because we will definitely eat flies” she recounted.
The Whein Town Sanitary Landfill Site was purchased in 2007 and opened to the public in 2008, in response to addressing solid waste management following the closure of the Fiamah Community.
According to the operation and maintenance guidelines of the facility, there should be a regular monitoring system by the sanitary landfill site management in the host community to ensure that environmental pollutions by the wast are address. But citizens claimed they rarely see the site management in their areas to attend to some of their numerous concerns.
An Independent investigation conducted by reporter uncovered that The emergency infrastructure project is now creating complete health hazards for inhabitants in many capacity as fence barracking the site has began breaking from the north-west angle.
Portion of the fence broke as a result of heavy downpour of rain that cause overflowing of water from the site.
“Since then, we have been killing snakes around our area” another community dweller told our reporter.
Residents furthered that the falling of the landfill fence has put their life at higher risk, prompting their calls for the shutdown of the facility.
Responding to Concerns from members of the Landfill surrounding was Pekeleh Gbuapaye, the outgoing Director for Press and Public Affairs of the Monrovia City Cooperation, who on behalf of the mayor Safia asserted that the MCC is in solidarity with the condition of the affected citizens, emphasizing that plans are underway for the relocation of the garbage in Cheesmanburg.
“all we can tell the residents of that community, while we work together to ensure the relocation of that landfill, we want to also say to them, we pity their condition.” he mentioned.
According to him, until the relocation project can be completed, the Whein town facility Will continue to be used, taking into account usual maintenance.
What is Conflicting?
Pekeleh further argued that despite the alarm raised from citizens over the lack of save drinking water, there’s no sufficient evidence to authenticate there claims.
Contrary to the community dwellers’ concerns about the MCC inability to regularly address their situation, the Mornrovia Mayor’s office asserted that their team has always been available in addressing some of their needs including the distribution of Mosquitoes nets. However, he didn’t disclose a specific time for the closure of the garbage site. “We under and we are doing everything humanly possible regarding the garbage temporary management” he emphasized, maintaining that their office is cognizant of the relocation plan.
As it stance, the dwellers in this part of the Barnard Farm are in the need of Humanitarian support to address these pressing concerns beginning with Save drinking, regular mosquito nets so as to pretend themselves from several issues that threatens their survival.
