Oyo Has 3 Serviceable Waste Trucks, We Used Our Car Batteries To Test Them — Commissioner

The commissioner of environment and water resources, Hon. Kehinde Ayoola, has revealed why the Oyo State Waste Management Authority, OYWMA, has resorted to renting trucks to pack refuse on the road.

According to Ayoola, it was after the sack of WestAfrica ERNG that they got to know that the assets of OYWMA were dilapidated.

Ayoola, who is a former speaker of the Oyo State House of Assembly, explained how he and others had to remove batteries from their personal cars to start the three serviceable trucks available.

Oyo state government has now revealed plans to overhaul waste management in the state in order to curb indiscriminate roadside dumping of refuse.

Oyo state commissioner of environment and water resources, Hon. Kehinde Ayoola said in his statement on Saturday that the government will initiate community waste management system across the state as well as provide receptacle for better disposal of refuse.

This action followed the recent termination of contract with the private company, West Africa ENRG which was in charge of waste management across Oyo state.

The Nation had also exclusively reported in a two- part story titled Ibadan: coping with the siege of garbage, detailing how the residents of the state’s capital, Ibadan, with over 3.5 million population, face the consequences of improper waste disposal over the years.

Ayoola affirmed that the West Africa ENRG had failed in its role and left most of the machineries dilapidated.

“The government found the former waste contractor to be in material breach of the agreement he entered into with the state government. That’s a primary ground for the revocation.

“The secondary ground is that the OYOWMA, whose activities he was contracted to oversee, now has a new Chairman of Board and a General Manager.

“Since two men cannot captain a ship, one had to go; in this case, the contractor.

“After he left, we found out that OYOWMA’s assets are in a sorry state of dilapidation and depletion.

“For instance, only three small Canter trucks were still serviceable and even then, we had to remove batteries from our personal cars to start them!

“We had to rent trucks”, he said.

The commissioner further noted that: “Wastes are dumped on the median almost immediately after we cleared them. Of course, the last administration removed the waste bins from our streets and avenues”

“Dumpsites have not been accessible to trucks since the past three days because the last contractor never carried out regular maintenance of the dumpsites despite being a condition in their contract.

“As pointed out above, as at the time they left, OYOWMA had only 3 small Canter trucks that cannot pick 10 tons of waste at a go whereas about 64 compactors are lying waste and cannibalized at the OYOWMA yard at Agodi Gate.

On the government’s extensive plan, ‘we are renting trucks. More trucks (preferably 20-tonners that can tip) means more capacity to pick more waste. If anyone has 20-ton tippers, please send them to me. We are picking day and night.

“We are campaigning that people should not put trash on the road. Trucks will move at designated times of the day and they can empty their trash in them.

“We are doing palliative repairs to the dumpsites. More contractors to be licensed”, he revealed.

“Community waste management system will kick in whereby specific communities will own the process. Waste receptacles shall be provided.

“We are going to construct 2 new Sanitary Landfills to complement the 4 dumpsites at Ajakanga, Aba Eku, Lápitẹ́ and Àwọ́tán.

“We are establishing five new Transfer Loading Stations where wastes will be sorted and the recyclable components shall be moved to recycling plants.

“We are engaging interested investors on things like waste to electricity and waste to biogas on PPP basis.

“I therefore plead with our people to bear with us. We are indeed sorry for the inconvenience,” the statement ended.