The Rivers State House of Assembly yesterday directed the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development to demolish, within one week, all the refuse receptacles built within Port Harcourt metropolis by the Ministry of Environment.
The lawmakers had picked holes in the manner the said refuse receptacles were constructed within Port Harcourt metropolis.
Following a motion by a member of the House condemning the receptacles, the permanent secretaries of the Ministry of Environment and that of the Housing and Urban Development Ministry were yesterday summoned to the state House of Assembly.
The Speaker of the House, Rt Hon Tonye Harry, who issued the directive, urged the Ministry of Urban Development to ensure that the structures were removed within the stated period of time.
Hon Harry stated that the House would constitute an ad-hoc committee to ensure that the directive was competed with.
He commended the sponsor of the motion and the entire lawmakers for their support, adding that the Assembly will continue to ensure that the image of the state was maintained.
The speaker commended the Ministry of Urban Development for their boldness in writing to Ministry of Environment on the project, and assured them of the support of the House at all times.
He promised that the state Assembly would appropriate more funds to the ministry to enable it carry out its task effectively, noting that the perennial flooding being experienced in Port Harcourt and its environs was attributed to the illegal structures built within the areas.
Answering questions at the floor of the House, Mr Ngozi Nworgu who led other officers of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development said that the ministry had written letters to the Ministry of Environment urging it to stop work on the construction of the project.
Also speaking, Mr Gogo Igban Gogo, the area coordinator, Rivers State Environmental Sanitation Authority averred that the agency has so far demolished over 30 receptacles in Port Harcourt metropolis following the advice from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development.
Mr Gogo opined that the abrupt end of the past administration made it impossible for the agency to complete the destruction of the receptacles, and regretted that huge amount of money has been wasted in the construction of the project.
Virtually all the lawmakers that spoke during the deliberation expressed dissatisfaction with the project, and described it as a criminal act geared toward defrauding the state government.
They noted that the project contradicted the vision of government in its effort to rid the state all forms of illegal structures across the state.
