Abia State governor, Dr Alex Otti, has called on residents to imbibe the culture of keeping their environment clean at all times, stating that he is passionate about that.
Otti spoke on Saturday while leading members of the State Executive Council and other appointees to participate in this month’s cleanup exercise in some parts of Umuahia, stating that the essence of leading members of his cabinet to take part in the exercise was to mobilize Abians on the need to clean their environment.
Represented by his Chief of Staff (CoS) Pastor Caleb Ajagba, the governor expressed delight that a lot of people participated in the exercise, which he rated as successful, adding that it was good to engage the people rather than harassing or coercing them as is in line with the principle of inclusiveness of his administration.
The CoS, however, noted that going forward, there would be repercussions for defaulters of the exercise and reminded citizens that the task of rebuilding Abia State is a collective one.
The Commissioner for Environment and Urban Renewal, Mr. Philemon Ogbonna and his Information and Culture counterpart, Prince Okey Kanu, described the exercise as impressive, saying that it was part of keeping Abia clean.
They urged Abians to join hands with the administration of Dr. Alex Otti to achieve a sustained clean environment. They said going forward, every motor park or market that opens during the exercise would be sanctioned as it is not going to be business as usual.
Also speaking, the General Manager, Abia State Environmental Protection Agency (ASEPA), Mr. Ogbonnia Okereke noted that there has been remarkable improvement in refuse management since the inception of Dr. Otti’s administration and assured that it would be sustained.