By Kemi Olatunde

The Ondo State Government has reiterated the need to stop the indiscriminate creation of illegal dump sites in markets across Akure to prevent disease outbreaks.

Chairman of the Ondo State Waste Management Authority (OSWMA), Mrs Olayinka Alabi, made this known while speaking with Weekend Hope shortly after the weekly market environmental sanitation exercise at the Odo-Ipetu Market in Akure on Thursday.

She urged traders to adopt proper waste disposal practices to facilitate effective evacuation by waste collectors, stressing that the government is taking proactive measures to improve waste management across the state.

According to her, the government is committed to ensuring regular waste evacuation in Akure markets and has called on traders to prioritise environmental sanitation.

“The situation in the market is terrible; illegal dumps have been created thus blocking the drainage. There is need to prevent flood during the rains and that is why government will put measures in place for immediate evacuation to avoid flooding,” she said.

Iyaloja of Odo-Petu Market, Mrs Adeola Abiola, decried the indiscriminate waste disposal in the market, noting that previous efforts had been made to curb the menace.

“Non-traders from other parts of the environment do make use of the site. Before now, some people were stationed there to prevent the illegal dumping of refuse there. It has been evacuated three times by me,” she said.

She appealed to the government to provide waste trucks in the market to enable traders to dispose of waste properly.

Also speaking, Iyalaje of Odo-Petu, Mrs Florence Adebiyi, called for the active participation of waste collectors, stating, “We are ready to pay for the service rendered.”