Overgrown grasses and shrubs are now the norm around us. The most worrisome are those seen in the heart of the city especially around public spaces, institutions and even offices. For a state whose logo is ‘ peace and tourism ‘ an unkempt environment calls for concern. It gives us a very bad name among the comity of states.
One of the things most governments are engaged in is selling their states to investors. To sell one’s product successfully involves packaging. If Plateau will make a headway in that direction, then some measures have to be taken to make that a reality.
A drive around town has revealed how unkempt the environment around most public institutions are. Take for instance, the long stretch of Airforce Military School fence that faces the road that goes down to Rayfield, seat of government, it is overgrown with shrubs. And it makes the area look bad. In the past, the school authority used to ensure it was well trimmed.
The outward appearance of most offices, schools, institutions are wearing an unkempt outlook. Where there should be flowers, one sees overgrown grasses or shrubs. A good example are properties opposite St Finbarr’s Catholic Church, Rayfield. This is the same road that leads to Government House. The attention of the owners of these properties should be drawn to the fact that they have a responsibility to keep the property neat not only inside but outside because it affects how the state looks.
It is also on record that majority of these structures are residential houses of people who do not live here on the Plateau, but wish to have a gigantic building and only employ the services of young people as security to look after their property without any serious maintenance.
Most of these houses are around Rayfield, Millionaires Quarters, Ibrahim Taiwo, JD Gomwalk road, Yakubu Gowon way, Murtala Muhammad way, Apollo Crescent , both State and Federal Low cost, Bukuru Expressway and so on. Sadly, as beautiful as these buildings are, maintaining their surroundings is a problem.
We are not in any way discouraging lovers of Jos-Plateau from coming to build here, but helping in making Plateau healthy, beautiful and safe is what we are requesting. It is possible that you were attracted to the state by its serene environment, clement weather, beautiful topographical setting and hospitable nature of its residents. However, we are requesting that you help in making this town more beautiful and attractive.
Unfortunately, more attention is always given to grasses inside the premises, leaving the side facing the road bushy until the exit of the rainy season where they can set fire to burn them. This is making the beautiful city less attractive and we do not expect the government or Plateau Ministry of Environment to send its cleaners to these institutions or houses to clear the grasses for us.
Although, some few have interlocking to the road lane, the majority of these institutions and houses do not care about what their outside view looks like. For some institutions, all they care about is what their take home pay would be at the end of every month.
They fail to understand that when you fail to make the environment of your organisation clean and attractive to whoever comes in, you are destroying what it was meant for and it affects patronage especially when it is a business organisation.
Even just for the fear of snakes and other reptiles, one needs not be told to cut those grasses down to avoid any avoidable incidents that may bring pain to us while still at work or on our way out. It is not safe to deliberately create hiding places for these dangerous reptiles in a big city like this.
This has made the beautiful city of Jos look untidy. Dry grasses and shrubs are in abundance on most road paths and some portions of the city centre. It looks like the dry grasses or shrubs have nutritional value, because of their abundance in almost every part of the city.
We commend Governor Caleb Mutfwang , who has re-instituted the monthly sanitation exercise in the state where movement would be restricted from 6am to 10am as was obtained in the past. However, for some months now, it has not been observed. Government needs to stamp its feet to reinstate the practice to change the narrative on the Plateau.
It would be out of place to revisit the old practice of engaging sanitation supervisors who used to be given areas that they covered to make sure residents keep their environment neat. It worked wonders as no one wants to be labelled dirty.
It would be recalled that years back, the state government contracted waste management to some private organisations, but not much was achieved. Although, it started well but it crashed along the line either for non compliance on the side of the citizens or lack of seriousness on the part of the contractors. Only God knows!
In spite of the several meetings and negotiations between these contractors and the State Ministry of Environment over the years, waste materials and grasses were seen along our major streets. It is possible that the failure of this privatisation was what forced government to go back to the old practice of strict monthly sanitation exercise during the last dispensation.
However, even as we advise the government to strictly reinstate the monthly sanitation exercise, it would also be good if the government would instruct institutions and residential houses to not just stay indoors during this exercise as a sign of respect to the order. They should be seen clearing their surroundings. All hands should be on deck to change the look of Plateau State.
In fact, drastic steps should be taken against these institutions or residential houses who deliberately leave grasses to outgrow, so that our dream of being the tourism haven of Nigeria would be achieved. It may not be out of place to keep awareness going so that a fine could be charged against any defaulter.
