Ondo State Waste Management Authority has been charged to be alive to its responsibilities in enforcing relevant sanitation laws so that diligent efforts of in keeping the State clean can yield positive results.

This enforcement if carried out diligently will make Akure, the Ondo State capital clean as expected.

Chief Executive Officer of ZL Global Alliance, Dr Abiola Bashorun threw the challenge while reacting to what she described as mischievous and misleading publication depicting Akure as a dirty city.

She said the recurring dirt littering the town was as a result of failure of the Private Sector Participants, PSPs who refused to pack debris from the interiors.

The ZLGA boss insisted that the pictures being brandished in a section of the media “are not just outrightly misleading but also preposterously mischievous”.

She said ZL Global Alliance, as a responsible waste management firm engaged by the Ondo state government has been living up to expectations and efficiently carrying out its duties notwithstanding obvious challenges.

Setting the record straight, she said, “Our company is responsible for public waste management in Ondo state, and especially, Akure, the location currently under reference.

“For the avoidance of doubt, this task covers Airport road to Fiwasaye to Agbogbo, and Fiwasaye to Oba Adesida-Oyemekun to Road Block areas, including Alagbaka axis to Nepa area. These routes have been diligently serviced within the ambit of the dictates of the contract that we signed with the Ondo State Government.”

She explained that the company “sacrificially had to cover the routes at least four times in a day due to the failure of the Private Sector Participating companies engaged to service streets and hinterlands of the capital city”, adding that the “failure has forced many people to resort to taking out their wastes to public waste routes as they see that ZLGA cleans the places every time.”

While rating the performance of the state waste management authority low, Bashorun insisted that effective waste management that will make Akure remain a clean city will involve proper enforcement of sanitation laws and compliance of Private Sector Partners with the tenets of their agreement with government.

She, therefore, tasked the authority to provide the needed leadership and not to allow ‘avoidable irresponsibilities’ rubish the modest and diligent efforts of ZL Global Alliance.

While pledging her company’s commitment to delivering on its mandate in the interest of the people of the State, she urged media professionals to always verify information and investigate issues beyond what she called “emotional cum sentimental dance of ridicule that some disgruntled elements are engaging in.”