Buea Council sanitation workers accused of extorting shop owners as garbage inundates city

Shop owners in Buea are raising concerns over what they describe as exploitation by workers of the sanitation department of the Buea Council.

According to reports, sanitation workers have been collecting fees from shop owners without issuing receipts, a practice that has left many vulnerable to paying double or facing fines.

The sanitation fee is officially set at FCFA 25,000. But Council workers often collect just FCFA 10,000 and do not issue receipts.

Shop owners who accept this arrangement find themselves in a difficult situation when the Council later sends another team to inspect for proof of payment.

Without a receipt, they are forced to pay the full amount plus a fine.

“Traders who paid 10,000 francs instead of 25,000 francs with a receipt to the sanitation officials are in trouble. This is because, within a month or less, the Council will send another team to inspect and ask for the sanitation fee receipt,” a shop owner in Buea told MMI.

“Those without a receipt will be forced to pay the full 25,000 francs plus a fine. This has been the practice for years. The same female sanitation boss will send a different team, and when you explain that you already paid 10,000 francs without a receipt, they’ll ask ‘to whom?’ and claim it’s not their concern.”

The situation came to a head last week at Mile 17 Motor Park, where sanitation workers reportedly demanded FCFA 10,000 FCFA from traders.

The trader who spoke to MMI said the workers did not answer they were questioned for such dubious means.

GARBAGE CRISIS IN BUEA

Meanwhile, Buea is facing a growing sanitation crisis, with garbage heaps accumulating in several neighborhoods.

Areas such as Ndongo, Checkpoint, Mile 17, Bomaka, and Muea have seen an increase in uncollected waste, leading to blocked roads and unbearable stench.

Residents are increasingly frustrated, blaming municipal authorities for the deteriorating cleanliness of the town.

Despite efforts by Mayor David Mafany Namange to address the issue by contracting student holiday workers to clean gutters, the mounting garbage is posing a significant health risk to both the workers and residents.

“Buea was very neat when Hyssacam was not here,” passengers could be heard complaining as the taxi drove pass the garbage heap on Sunday.

The city’s household waste is collected and disposed by the Hygiene and Sanitation company, HYSACAM.

But efforts by the company’s efforts are insufficient, as it is mandated to only dispose of a certain quantity of garbage per day based on its agreement with the Buea Council.

Residents are calling for a more effective waste management strategy as Buea gradually loses its aura.

©Mimi Mefo Info