NYSC'S NATIONAL ENVIRONMENT SANITATION DAY INITIATIVE GOOD FOR CITIZEN'S HEALTH, SAYS MAYOR OF PORT HARCOURT CITY

......AS THE EXERCISE WITNESSED RESOUNDING SUCCESS ACROSS THE STATE.

The Mayor of Port Harcourt City, Sir (Hon.) Allwell Ihunda has described the NYSC National Environmental Sanitation Day initiative of NYSC top management as " timely, novel, strategic and very good for the health of citizens".

He made the above assertion today during the flag off of the NYSC National Environmental Sanitation Day with the theme: "Clean Environment/Good Hygiene: Panacea for Good Health and Long Life" held at the Port Harcourt city LGA Council hall.

The Mayor commended the DG NYSC and top management for sharing the same vision with his administration in providing a clean, safe and healthy environment for the citizens.

He noted that his administration has recently inaugurated the Council's Environmental Sanitation Committee with the mandate to rid the Council of filth and ensure maximum clean environment in the capital city, just about the same time NYSC came up with the national environmental sanitation day initiative.

Speaking further, Sir (Hon.) assured the NYSC that the Council's sanitation committee will work in tandem with them to achieve success noting that his office will support them with all necessary logistics to do their work well.

Earlier in his address, the NYSC Rivers State Coordinator, Chief Chinwendu Ogbonnaya Chukwu who flagged off the sanitation exercise in the state on behalf of the DG NYSC said the environmental sanitation day initiative was borne out of findings by NYSC top management from the last Health Initiative for Rural Dwellers, HIRD programme held to offer free medical treatment to indigent citizens and where it was found out that most of the sicknesses suffered by citizens were environment related such as cholera, typhoid fever, dysentery and malaria which occur from unclean environment.

Chief Chukwu further stated that in a bid to stem the tide above, the NYSC management took the proactive step of introducing the novel national environmental sanitation day to promote clean, safe and healthy environment for the citizens.

He informed the gathering that NYSC has put measures in place deepen clean environment for all citizens by making the sanitation exercise a biweekly affair.

He called for the support of all critical stakeholders by way of providing needed logistics to the Scheme to compliment her efforts and achieve maximum success.

Chief Chukwu robustly commended Sir (Hon.) Allwell Ihunda, the Mayor of Port Harcourt city for the massive sanitation items he procured to assist the NYSC to achieve the desired result in the clean up exercise.

After the formal flag off ceremony, Chief Chukwu led from the front as he joined officials of NYSC, the Phalga sanitation committee members and corps members in the cleaning and evacuation of refuse at Isaac Boro park by Mile 1 flyover.

He also monitored the exercise in designated areas of Port Harcourt and environs and expressed satisfaction with the conduct of the exercise across the state.