The Sole Administrator of Rivers State, Vice Admiral (Rtd) Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas, has charged the newly inaugurated board members of key state agencies to approach their duties with urgency, integrity, and innovation.
Speaking during the inauguration ceremony on Friday, at the Executive Chamber of Government House, Port Harcourt, the Administrator urged the appointees to be proactive and deeply committed to delivering on their critical mandates for the people of Rivers State.
The newly inaugurated boards includes, Rivers State Universal Basic Education Board (RSUBEB), Rivers State Senior Secondary Schools Board, Rivers State Internal Revenue Service Board, Rivers State Microfinance Agency, Rivers State Contributory Health Protection Programme Board, Rivers State University Teaching Hospital Board and the Rivers State Waste Management Agency (RIWAMA).
Addressing the Board of the Rivers State Waste Management Agency (RIWAMA), the Administrator called on the board to lead a comprehensive and disciplined approach to waste management.
“The task before this board is urgent and enormous. You must lead the charge to rid our cities and communities of filth.
“This is not just about clearing waste, it is about instituting a system of efficiency, sustainability, and discipline,” he said.
Ibas revealed that the government has already procured modern equipment for waste collection and landfill management and is constructing access roads to dump sites to improve operational efficiency.
He challenged the board to explore innovative ways to convert waste into valuable assets such as energy and industrial raw materials, stating, “Around the world, waste is being transformed into power and products. Our state cannot be left behind.” He also called for strict enforcement of sanitation laws and greater public awareness.
Meanwhile, The newly inaugurated Chairman of Rivers State Waste Management Agency Board, Dr Samuel Nwanosike has called for public support to ensure Rivers State is clean from indiscriminate waste dumping.
Speaking shortly after his Inauguration, Nwanosike said that the available resources and laws in Rivers State are enough to ensure that the state is returned to the Garden City.
He announced the ban of dumping refuse on road median in Port Harcourt and urged the public to ensure that their waste is bagged appropriately before being dumped at approved waste disposal areas.
“All refuse coming from every home, factory, work place or market must be bagged before RIWAMA contractors pick them up.”
“If your refuse are not bagged, don’t bother expecting us to pick them up, you can live with them in your living rooms, bagging of refuse is now the new Dawn.”
While decrying the indiscriminate dumping of refuse and delay in evacuating refuse within Port Harcourt and environs, the RIWAMA Board Chairman called for a meeting of Waste collectors and Contractors to ensure that normalcy is returned back to the city.
Nwanosike also invited Heads of Market Unions and leadership of organizations that deals and produce waste for a meeting to ensure Rivers State environmental laws are obeyed without fear or favor.
He further called on parents to ensure their children adhere to the laws concerning the timing and mode of waste disposal as enforcement of the laws will soon commence
