I can recall, every Thursday during my Nysc, we usually go out to different places for environmental sanitation, where we make that environment clean, demonstrate it to those in that area and also educate them on how to always keep their environment clean. And I can also recall some areas we visited where their gutters were filled with all sorts of dirt, and the drainage they had was already blocked with plastic bottles, clothes, nylon and other waste. And that moment, I told my VP how strange all these things come to play, but sometimes, we hardly see the bigger picture of the mastermind systems behind all these that produce much more waste.
In a sane community, I totally understand why a person who throws dirt on the ground should be charged and face anything that comes with it. And the mentality most people have is that 'it is just a bottle; it is just this small nylon, so it does not matter,' it's this mentality that makes our roads become a dumping ground for some people.
Our individual responsibility is part of keeping our community and environment and even public spaces usable, and this is why rules have to matter. And I do think the rules are applicable to us; they should be applicable to all these companies. Who will catch them after they have bribed their way into the government or the government is collecting a huge benefit from them?
All these companies usually produce a larger scale of waste than a single individual. And such actions always have a large influence by which they affect our waters, farms, communities, lands, and even businesses. And thus is one of the reasons why a strong accountability should be demanded from them, not fair or weak treatment. In this country, I believe we have a body that is in charge of environmental regulations that is covering population, waste release, water quality, industrial pollution and some other areas I can't recall. If we have these bodies, then why the violation of those rules they have made? Yet, I remember that it's another thing to have a rule, and it's a totally different thing to enforce those rules.
From what I have seen, some of these companies are given fair treatment, yet they shouldn't be given special permission to release waste into our environment. Though all these companies we see around always have a technical process, permits and some go-ahead that we ordinary people don't have. So enforcement of laws will be different. But what I think should remain indifferent is the principle behind it because whoever causes harm to our society and surroundings should pay and answer for it, and no matter how big that organisation is, it should not be protected from answering for the harm they cause.
And what disturbs me most is not seeing the fair treatments given to these companies. It's seeing. It is seeing common people learn that rules are strict when they are easily negotiable and enforceable when the offender is powerful. That is where fairness matters.
During our sanitation those days, we only go with two baskets. But just a company can fill hundreds of those in a day. And that is why I'll say that the difference should not make accountability smaller. But it should be enforced, and make sure everyone learns from it that no one escapes because they are bigger than the other.
Thank you for reading.
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