By Benjamin Ogbuagu :
Residents of Anambra State have been urged to be consistent in the payment of their taxes and other related waste management fees to enable the Anambra State Waste Management Authority (ASWAMA) meet up with the increasing demands on waste management in the state.
The Managing Director, ASWAMA, Mr. Mike Ozoemena made this plea while speaking with news men at the Anambra State House of Assembly Complex, Awka.
The MD noted that the current ASWAMA law which was made in 2015 can no longer carry the present realities on ground. He thanked members of the 7th House of Assembly for resolving in their wisdom to amend some sections of the law.
“It is not possible to get waste management to the level we want it with the former rates which was fixed when diesel sold at ₦85; now a liter of diesel is about ₦800,” he noted.
Mr. Ozoemena urged Ndi Anambra who are desirous of a clean, green and livable Mega City to be ready to play their parts which is in the payment of their ASWAMA bills and that they would in turn be able to hold government accountable.
“Our people must understand that this administration means well for them, many infrastructural projects are coming up, several roads are being flagged off in the state too and all these are capital intensive.
“There is no way government can make do with the lean resources available to the state; if we also have to encumber them with the amount of money necessary for waste management which runs into billions.’’
The ASWAMA Boss while pleading for the understanding of the people considering the current economic situation in the country, noted that contractors must be paid, the machines need to be serviced and fuel must be procured to run machines and vehicles used for waste disposal.
He, then, called on residents to sustain the prompt payment of their ASWAMA bills and other related taxes to enable the state government to deliver on the expected mandate.
