Sanitary inspection system, previously known in colonial days in Igboland, as ‘Ndi Ole Ala’, is to be reintroduced in all local government areas of Abia State.
They are to inspect the environmental conditions of urban and rural areas.
The State Commissioner for Environment, Philemon Asonye Ogbonna stated this in Umuahia during a meeting he had with environmental health officers and top local government officials.
The Commissioner, who said that the move was to provide quality health for Abia residents, also said that the initiative would help in preventing the outbreak of diseases.
He recalled the important roles that were played by sanitary inspectors in the past which ensured that people kept their homes neat and remained free of deadly diseases.
Ogbonna, who tasked traditional rulers to always mobilize their subjects to clean up their surroundings, promised to address several challenges confronting the operations of the environmental health officers.
In their response, the environmental health officers commended the State government for the bold initiative but complained that their operations were hampered by some challenges, which include lack of a cemetery for the burial of unidentified corpses, especially dead bodies that were found in decomposing state.
They further called for regular funding of their operations, promising to penetrate every nook and cranny of the State in carrying out sanitary inspections.
