The Society for Water and Sanitation (NEWSAN) has called on the Plateau Government to construct toilets in offices and other public places in the state.
Mr Jephtha Daleng, Programme Officer of the organisation, made the call in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Jos, in commemoration of the 2020 World Toilet Day.
Delang decried the absence of the facilities in most public offices such as markets, government ministries, agencies, schools, motor parks, and hospitals in the state.
He said this was posing serious threats to the ongoing campaign against open defecation in the state.
“The absence of toilets in public places in Plateau is a very big challenge to the fight against open defection.
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“In the state secretariat for instance, there is no toilet constructed outside the building for public use, except those attached to various offices.
“It is the same situation in Plateau Specialist Hospital; patients and their relatives defecate in the open. This facility is also not available in schools, markets, motor parks and other public places in the state.
“So, I call on the State Government to construct toilets in public places, if not, the campaign to end open defection by 2030 would be a mirage,’’ he said.
The programme officer further called on the government to also provide hand washing facilities in public places, to promote the culture of regular hand washing and personal hygiene among the citizens.
He also admonished residents of the state to construct toilets in their houses, insisting that open defection did not only affect the health of the people, but the economic and social status of the state and the nation.
Commenting on the situation, the Director of Sanitation in the Plateau Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency (RUWASA),Mrs Magdalene Majau, said the State Government was aware of the challenges and was making efforts to address them.
As part of the efforts, Majau said, the agency was already providing toilet facilities in Primary Healthcare Centres and primary schools in parts of the state.