Some residents of Gwagwalada Area Council, Abuja, have called on the government at all levels to offer lasting solutions to the menace of open defecation in the area.

The residents, who made the call in separate interviews with journalists on Monday in Gwagwalada, said the solutions would prevent disease outbreaks.

They said there was a need to construct more public toilets in designated places within the council and enforce their usage.

The residents also said that sanctions such as fines and imprisonment should be given to any household without a toilet or anyone found engaging in open defecation.

Funke Ajayi, a civil servant, said the issue of open defecation was worrisome and needed the government’s intervention.

She said this was necessary to stop open defecation and avoid an epidemic.

Ms Ajayi also called for the sanctioning of some residents who found it difficult to use the public toilet when it was provided.

“Although there are few public toilets that I have seen around, there is still a need to build more and place serious sanctions on anyone found engaging in open defecation.

“There are some roads in Gwagwalada; for instance, along Market Road, the stench of faeces makes one uncomfortable when passing through the walkway.

“The Area Council needs to do something about this unpleasant practice by some residents,” she said.

Chinasa Okeke, a nurse, said that open defecation always comes with a lot of health issues, such as cholera, diarrhoea, typhoid, and other water-borne diseases.

Ms Okeke said this practice was harmful to human health, especially those in rural communities who defecate close to their source of water supply.

“Open defecation is a dangerous practice that can cause serious health challenges. Most times, you see people defecate close to the streams, which are their source of water supply.

“This is very harmful because when it rains, the rain washes them into the same steam or river and they still go ahead to use such water for cooking and other house chores,” Ms Okeke said.

She, therefore, appealed to the government to provide standard public toilets with constant water supply at strategic places in order to curb the menace.

Also, Rebecca Ayangba, a businesswoman and mother of four, said that she allowed her children to defecate openly due to a lack of water in her area.

“I have a toilet in my house but what is the use of the toilet without water to flush and clean after usage? I buy water from water vendors at the rate of N1,000 per truck of ten rubbers.

“I have little children that will want to defecate often and with the cost of water, I cannot stop them from defecating openly,” she said.

She said the issue of lack of water in her area had forced many households to also engage in open defecation.

According to her, for Nigeria to be open defecation-free, there is a need for a lot of things to be put in place, such as constant water, especially for those in rural communities.

Nigeria has set the goal of being free of open defecation by 2025.

UNICEF has estimated that Nigeria will need to build 3.9 million toilets annually to achieve its 2025 target.

Nigeria’s potential challenges in attaining the objective of eliminating open defection by 2025 may include inadequate access to clean water for maintaining good sanitation practices.

A growing population and a lack of public awareness, including challenges related to service accessibility, are also major challenges.

(NAN)