Heritage News Liberia / 20/Jul/2023 /
At Liberia’s Biggest Business Hub Northeast of Monrovia, Stench of Stink Garbage Menace, Nightmare spreading Uncontrollably
A famous and populous commercial hub in Liberia regarded as the biggest business district situated at the outskirt of Monrovia known as Red-light in Paynesville is now playing host to stench of stink garbage piles rendering the entire environment into a haven of health and sanitation hazards.
Up to date, the mountains of garbage menace and nightmare continue to spread uncontrollably in all strategic entry points of the overcrowded commercial hub of the Red-light Market Northeast of Monrovia.
Environmental and sanitation experts that spoke to this writer described the current state of the densely populated commercial hub as the biggest threat to health, environmental and sanitation crises that need urgent intervention of the highest leadership of the Liberian Government.
Sadly, newly constructed concrete fence with the solid iron pipes intended to stop the street hawkers especially petty traders have been destroyed by the mountains of garbage piles being dumped by small and large business houses at the Red-light general market in Paynesville outside Monrovia.
Regrettably, scenes and sites of the uncontrollable garbage are indeed shocking as the rotten garbage odour of the refuse is becoming unbearable in every shape, form and manner.
Visitors, sanitary inspectors and health sector personnel that trek through the Red-light Market every day of the week told this writer that the situation is so grave to the extent that human dead bodies, dogs, mice and cats are being buried by some Red-light community residents in the heart of the commercial hub in Paynesville.
Owing to the vitality and strategic location of the hub which is regarded as major entry to the nation’s capital Monrovia, several businessmen and women carrying out businesses have expressed grave and shock at the non-proactive attitudes been exhibited by authorities of the Municipal Government of the Paynesville City Corporation (PCC) over the years.
Major stakeholders and other concerned groups in the sanitation and environmental sectors of Liberia also told this writer that unless the authorities of the Municipal Government of Paynesville can muster the courage and fortitude to extensively begin some practical steps in the current strategies of garbage collection from the Red-light Market, the future of the commercial hub development, growth and progress are indeed doomed for failure.
The sanitation stakeholders pointed out that, year in and year out, external partners such as the World Bank, UNICEF and other leading international Nongovernmental entities have provided enormous and substantial financial, logistical and human capacity building to the Municipal Government of Paynesville.
But, the sanitation stakeholders lamented that such precious and critical sanitation resources in the forms of money and training have only ended up in the dustbin of history and the stranded businessmen, women and the thousands of petty traders continue to do their businesses in the midst of stench and squalor at the Red-light Market in Paynesville.
Henceforth, now, at the peak of the rainy season in Monrovia and Paynesville areas that experience the heaviest rainfall in Liberia, the vulnerable and garbage prone business people are bracing up to encounter the menace and nightmare associated with doing realistic business in the center of garbage ridden and contagious disease infested Red-light Market in Paynesville.
On top of the insurmountable garbage challenges, majority of the drainages newly constructed and rehabilitated are now clogged with mountains of garbage stockpiles thus sparking of extensive flooding of water and airborne diseases at the detriment of the businessmen, women and petty traders and community residents that live in the immediate environs of the Red-light Market in Paynesville.
Consequence with the current sporadic and spontaneous flooding already affecting flood plain dwellers in several parts of Monrovia and Paynesville and its environs, socioeconomic and sanitation hardships and challenges have begun to have some grave effects as most of the houses situated in flood prone communities submerged in flooded water borne diseases.
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