The Plateau Environmental Protection and Sanitation Agency (PEPSA) has stepped up its flood preparedness strategy, calling on residents to keep their environment clean and avoid building on waterways as the state braces for possible flooding this year.
The Director-General of PEPSA, Samuel Dapiya, gave the charge on Saturday after monitoring the monthly sanitation exercise across parts of Jos, including Tudun Wada, Jenta-Makeri, and the T\&T Junction area.
Dapiya commended citizens for increasingly participating in the exercise but stressed that more needs to be done to fully achieve the agency’s mandate and noted that while the exercise has inconvenienced some residents, the goal is to make sanitation part of community life.
“We have realised there is significant compliance, and people are also participating in cleaning the environment. Around British, where we went, we noticed some businesses were open and some filling stations were also selling.
But of course, for us, it’s not about attacking their businesses — it’s about ensuring that this active project of keeping Plateau clean is seen as a collective responsibility,” he said.
As part of the enforcement drive during the exercise, PEPSA sealed a filling station — Kaisan Oil & Gas and General Merchants Nigeria Ltd — around the T\&T Junction, along with several shops in Tudun Wada and Jenta-Makeri that failed to comply with sanitation directives.
Defaulters were arraigned before a mobile court, with some sentenced to community service after failing to meet fine conditions.
“When we achieve our goal, sanitation will be done without enforcement. But for now, we must bear the brunt of ensuring that these things are done and sorted within the lifespan of this administration,” he stated.
With Plateau listed among states likely to experience flooding this year, the DG warned against indiscriminate waste disposal and construction on drainage channels.
He explained that PEPSA teams have been responding to flood-prone areas whenever red-flag alerts come in.
“Just last week in Dong Kassa, we intervened where damming caused by poor waste disposal was already affecting the road. Whenever we get reports, we move immediately — even in the rain — to check what’s blocking water flow,” he stressed.
Dapiya also underscored the role of the media in driving awareness, noting that PEPSA works with radio, TV, bloggers, and Hausa-language outlets to encourage behavioural change.
“If you see something, please report it. The media is strategically placed to ensure this mandate and vision are properly achieved,”
The DG thanked Governor Caleb Mutfwang for his consistent support for sanitation, environmental protection, and waste management and urged Plateau residents to continue taking ownership of keeping their communities clean.
