In an interview with The Point, he said, "The country’s Anti-Littering Act of 2007 was enacted solely to address the growing menace of rampant littering in public places, saying: Unfortunately, despite its existence, the Act has been utterly ignored by the authorities for reasons known to them and littering remains a fashionable conduct in all public places in The Gambia.”
The UPC president also urged the Gambian leader to take ‘immediate steps in banning the importation of plastics into the country in order to curb this menace.’
“It appears like some people take delight in depositing litter in our public places. The country is slowly turning into a ‘Mbalit State’ thanks to the authorities’ cooperation and the citizens’ deafening quietude and their ritualistic habits of littering in gutters, and in all open places without exceptions,” he claims.
The primary function of law, he went on, is to regulate human behavior and ensure a sustainable co-existence within the environment we all inhabit.
He further added: “This is particularly pertinent when a country’s constitution enshrines the right to life, a monumental cornerstone of all fundamental rights. Without a healthy environment, the enjoyment of this sacred right is greatly and severely compromised, which renders it completely useless.”
“It is without a doubt that the right to life as enshrined in our 1997 Constitution in section 18, is the most fundamental of all rights, serving as a precondition for the realisation or enjoyment of every other fundamental right, both domestically and internationally.”
Jabang further added: “Environmental protection as almost always remarked by the renowned Islamic scholar, Sheikh Hamma Jaiteh, is not just a moral obligation or a legal necessity, but also a religious obligation. Laws play a pivotal role in addressing environmental issues caused by human activity. These laws aim to mitigate the dire impacts of human actions on our ecosystems.”
“When legal provisions are nipped in the bud, the value of life for both humans and other living organisms is severely harmed, thus violating the very essence of the right to life, a right that is inherently accorded to all living creatures.”
The new student-driven association dubbed the United Patriots for Change (UPC), he continued, embarked on a massive environmental sanitation in the Serrekunda hospital in collaboration with Honorable Musa Cham, the National Assembly Member for Serrekunda.
“This community service resulted in similar cleanups in several places within the country by the association. Upon cleaning the hospital, we embarked on street cleaning, picking up the litter on the busy streets of Serrekunda. We were utterly disheartened by the huge deposition of all kinds of objects which were quite unsafe to the pedestrians, and were unsightly, unsanitary, and equally nauseous,” he emphasized.
“The Anti-Littering Act of 2007 was enacted to drastically curb indiscriminate dumping in public places. The law in section 4 categorises the depositing of litter in any gutters, streets, driveway, or any public place as an offense.”
Section 4(3) of the Act, he said, provides that any person who contravenes the provisions of this regulation commits an offense and is liable on conviction to a fine of not more than five thousand dalasis.
He stressed that the government must be held ‘accountable for failing to enforce this legislation effectively.’
“Public places are increasingly polluted with indiscriminate garbage, plastic waste, and other debris, thereby tarnishing the beauty of the environment and threatening public health.”
“The president should consider establishing a task force to regularly monitor and penalise violators of the law. This will help to create employment for the young, create revenue for the government, and enhance the aesthetic landscape of the country, not only for the inhabitants of the country but also for the tourists visiting the country.”
