Waste collection debts: AEPB to continue seal-up of govt offices, others

By Bisola Adeyemo
 
The Director, Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB), Engr. Osilama Braimah has announced plans to continue to seal up premises of Government Ministries, agencies and businesses amid failure to pay up their waste management bills in due time. 
 
The director disclosed in an official statement issued on Wednesday by Janet Audu Peni head of the information and outreach unit.
 
While explaining the reason for the seal-up exercise, the Director said, most residential buildings, governments agencies, and other business premises has refused to pay up their due waste management bills.
 
“We have so much money out there for services already rendered and what we are doing now is aimed at recovering our revenue. I have consistently explained that our charges are not taxes, but bills for services already provided for liquid and solid waste management and other sundry services that we provide to our clients in the FCT. What we expect is residents in the FCT to pay their bills promptly and correctly.
 
“Looking at our records, we discovered that in the last couple of years, people have not been paying for services rendered by AEPB. Now we have court orders to seal up premises of Government Ministries and agencies, businesses and private residences that have not paid their waste management bills and we have already commenced the seal up of premises of defaulters in a bid to recover our revenue out there which is to the tune of about N 10 Billion, Ten Billion Naira.” He said.
 
Describing the fall-out from the exercise, Engr. Braimah explained that the exercise, has nonetheless produced some prompt responses, strangely, as most defaulters do not want legal cases.
 
“Those whose premises were amongst the first to be sealed up immediately the exercise commenced have come to meet with us and have been making commitments to immediately pay up their bills, in some cases, a hundred percent payment of their bills, and in other cases, a fraction of what they owed has been paid and have or are negotiating when they will make full payment.  This has resulted in such premises being unsealed in order for them to resume their activities in their premises,” he quipped.
 
“This new drive will achieve the purpose of recovering our revenue out there, thus enabling us to continue to render services to our clients especially at a time like this, when the cost of diesel, materials and personnel costs, is soaring on a daily basis. Hence, we can’t continue to render free services, highly subsidized services to residents, this is why we have to embark on the seal up exercise in the first place.
 
“Individuals have come to our office in reaction to the seal up of their premise can now make payments easily and promptly at the payment point in the AEPB head office, eliminating the need to go to the bank to make payments.
 
“You can be sure that we are intensifying our enforcement capacity to recover the money owed to us by clients and to this end, there will be more prosecution in the courts, and more seal-up orders will be obtained,”
 
“We are at the moment, focusing on Government premises, however, we are also sealing up business plazas and some private residences.  Our aim is not to lock-up Government Offices indefinitely. We only intend to let the Ministries and Agencies of Government know they are owing and we resorted to this after every other attempt to get them to make their payments has failed to yield any positive outcome,” he added.
 
Enumerating the benefits of the exercise, the AEPB boss, said, “this seems to be the only approach that works as negotiations for the payment of waste management bills for most of these government premises are at the very lowest possible level.
 
“We hope to also use this ongoing seal-up to bring to public consciousness, the awareness to pay up their bills on time.”
 
In addition, Mrs Cecilia Makoji. Head Legal Unit, AEPB, said that the seal-up exercise commenced only after a properly constituted court ordered that premises of recalcitrant defaulters be sealed up after exhausting every legal procedure and they have refused to comply.
 
“What is most annoying is that they acknowledged being serviced by AEPB, but the reason why they wait to be compelled to make payment is best known too them. They left us with no choice than to resort to obtaining court order to compel them to pay up. Some of the Directors of Government Agencies that came to us complained that it was embarrassing for their premises to be sealed up, and we let them know that we did that after serving them with bills, sending them demand notices and summoning them to the mobile court, and still they refused to do the needful,” she quipped.
 
“We have provided them with services, which if they are dissatisfied with, they are free to complain using the appropriate channel, and their matters will be promptly resolved. It is only expected that they respond by paying their bills, even if they have to do so in instalments. It is very ironic, that most of the defaulters are the ones who cry the loudest that the city is dirty, yet they travel out often to see what is obtainable in other climes, yet do not wish that such best practices be replicated in Nigeria, especially, in the FCT.
 
“The exercise will also be extended to hotels, plazas and every business premise, including banks, residential buildings and apartments. As at the time of issuing this release, she revealed that they have sealed up premises in Asokoro, Maitama, Centenary City, and are continuing with Gwarimpa and others areas. She hinted that another round of mass trials of defaulters will soon commence, after which, if there is no satisfactory response, more seal-up orders will be given.” she added.