By Jim John
All residents in Kiunga, Western Province has been urged to keep the town clean.
It is an eyesore to see rubbish being thrown everywhere and town is becoming unhygienic to visitors coming from other provinces.
In recent years, there have been piles of rubbish and there is no rubbish truck to remove them.
Hard working cleaners have been doing their best to keep the town clean on a daily basis by removing the rubbish with spades, rakes and bags.
A cleaner Derick Wau, has been cleaning the town since 2020 expressed, however, there is still no change in Kiunga town.
“I don’t feel happy to collect rubbish in town every day. People must use their common sense to put rubbish in the right place,” he said.
Mr Wau said people going to town must be responsible for their own waste so as to allow clean and safe town.
According to the cleaners, the town authorities in Kiunga have not heard their call for proper management of town.
Due to economic and the mining activities, Western Province has been experiencing influx of people resulting in high population, and North Fly District particularly Kiunga, Ningerum and Tabubil is no longer kept clean.
More than 30,000 people access Kiunga town for business activities where locals as far as Delta Fly and Middle Fly Districts down Fly River travel long distances to town to access better services.
As the issue of littering continues, the cleaners have called on town authorities to stop illegal street sales around the town area, which has already become a risk to the general public especially betel nut stains on the streets.
Currently, the town authority is no longer functioning due to financial constraints which have led to leaders not actively performing their duties.
The town authorities in Kiunga when asked to further clarify regarding this matter had declined to speak with the Media.
