Bauchi State government is to enforce the law banning the planting of cereals within the city centre from the next farming season to check the activities of hoodlums who use such farms for criminal activities.
The director of inspection, Enforcement and Compliance of the State Environmental Protection Agency (BASEPA), Alhaji Mohammed Usman Sale dropped this hint at a pre-test of newly constructed user-friendly toilets located at the Multi-purpose Indoor Sports Hall opposite Wunti Market Bauchi yesterday.
He said farming of crops such as maize, sorghum and millet within households and within the premises of ministries, departments and agencies in major towns currently posed a security threat, as such farms formed hideouts of criminals who often vandalize and cart away government property.
Usman Sale who expressed gratitude to WaterAid Nigeria for funding the construction of the user-friendly toilet, appealed to the management of Wunti Market Traders Association and the road transport workers within the market to keep away hoodlums from the toilet site as well as ensure the entire location is free of human feces and garbage.
In his remarks, WaterAid Bauchi spokesman Mashat Mallo implored Bauchi State government and toilet business operators to replicate the new user friendly toilet models across the state to enable the government achieve its dream to end open defecation.
While commending government agencies like the Urban Development Board, RUWASA, and BASEPA for providing technical support for the project’s actualization, Mr Mallo urged the agencies to provide a reliable and sustainable water source for the toilets to encourage effective usage.
Earlier, the general manager of RUWASA, Alhaji Adamu Sabo urged BASEPA to supervise the setting up of a facility caretaker office comprising officials of Wunti Market Traders Association and the road transport workers union to ensure proper maintenance of the toilet.
Representatives of people with special needs, Asmazu Yahaya and Iliya Ismail, described the new toilet model as the most accessible for people with disabilities, saying, “Our members can use it independently without anybody’s support.
