In fact, the fear of the night-soil man was the beginning of wisdom for many residents of the urban communities who were always cautious and afraid to cross his path. Various myths were woven around him so much so that it became the widely held belief that if the night-soil man got angry and emptied the faeces inside the bucket on anyone or hit his foot on a stone and fell, such an unfortunate fellow and every other person spattered with the faeces would become a leper.
As time went on, society advanced and sanitation and environment improved, especially in the urban areas. The night-soil man naturally disappeared as the modern ways of disposing human waste through improved toilet technology and sewage system gained wide usage.
But the rural areas seem to have been left behind in this wise. Defecating in open places such as bushes and dumpsites have remained the means of disposing human waste in most villages and sub-urban areas. It is a common thing to see persons, young and old, emptying their bowels on dump sites and bushes in the villages. It is not strange for one to step on sticky substances, which usually turn out to be faeces while sauntering the bush paths and streets.
Rural communities in Nigeria are, however, not the only places where people defecate in the open. This is a problem that pervades the developing nations of the world. According to health experts, in 2011, one billion people out of the 2.5 billion people in rural communities in developing world who did not have access to proper toilet resorted to defecating in open places around them. Also, an estimated 1.77 billion people in villages in developing countries used pit latrines as at 2013. It is also a known fact that people living in Sub-Saharan African countries, including Nigeria, have the poorest access to toilet facilities.
Due to the poor sanitary condition arising from lack of access to toilets, especially in the grassroots, the Ogun State Government has been making efforts to stop people from defecating in open places, especially in the rural areas. To check this ugly trend, government has been collaborating with other developin the grassroots, the Ogun State Government ment partners and stakeholders to promote the construction and use of pit latrines amongst rural dwellers.
To ensure total sanitation of rural communities in the state and curb the disgusting habit of defecating in open places in the rural areas, government in collaboration with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and Unilever Global Foundation organized training/ workshops for stakeholders. At one of such programmes which took place in Ijebu Ode, chairmen of the 20 local government areas of the state, traditional rulers, Heads of Local Government Administration (HOLGA), and directors of Local Government Areas (LGA) Water and Environmental Sanitation and State Task Group Sanitation (STGS) members were in attendance.
Generally, under the pit latrine or pit toilet system, human faeces are collected in a hole in the ground. The system does not use water or uses just one to three litters per flush with pour-flush pit latrine. Unlike the modern toilet facilities, it is very cheap to construct and it is the lowest cost method of separating faeces from the people.
A pit latrine consists of three major parts: a hole in the ground, a slab or floor with a smal l hole, and a shelter. The shelter is often referred to as an outhouse. The pit is typically at least three meters (10 feet) deep and 1 m (3.2 feet) across.
One advantage of the pit latrine or toilet lies in the fact that it can check the spread of diseases by reducing the amount of human faeces left in the open due to open defecation if it is properly built and maintained. It also reduces the rate at which pathogens, which are the major cause of diarrhea and intestinal worm infections are transferred by flies between faeces and food.
Health statistics revealed that about 0.7million children below five years died from infectious diarrhea in 2011, while about 250million others had to absent themselves from school for days due to this disease. For those in developing countries, therefore, the pit toilet comes in handy against the unsanitary practice of defecating in open places.
Rural communities across the state are now being encouraged to take the provision and use of pit toilets seriously. Many rural residents expressed delight that the government’s “One House, One Toilet” initiative launched in 2013 aiming at putting an end to the menace of open defecation among rural dwellers has begun to yield fruits.
The concept was conceived by the United Nations Children Education Fund (UNICEF) and Unilever Plc in collaboration with the Ogun State Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency.
The project manager of the State Rural Water Supply and Sanitation (RUWATSAN), Mr. Olatokunbo Sonde, said the focus of the programme was to ensure a successful Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS). He said steps must be taken to sustain behavioural change through community awareness programmes on risk associated with Open Defecation (OD). Citing the success recorded in the previous sensitization meeting held in Odeda Local Government, he progress expressed delight that the local government has produced a large number of open defecation-free communities in Opeji, Alagbagba and Alabata wards.
Chairman, Ado-Odo/Ota Local Government, Sodiq Idowu Ojumo, commended the state government and its partners for putting in place the programme targeted at reducing open defecation in the rural communities. The UNICEF consultant, Mr. Patrick Osochua, thanked the government for supporting and creating a conducive atmosphere for the programme.
Last week, 42 communities in Opeji, Alagbagba and Alabata wards in Odeda LG that successfully completed their pit latrine projects for the various households were issued certificates. Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Rural Development, Mr. Bamidele Olugbebi, said: “The state government has zero tolerance for dirty environment and because of that, the government keyed into the concept. If they make their environment clean, it is to their own benefit. They shouldn’t be spending their hard-earned money in the hospital.”
Director of Water Supply and Environmental Sanitation Department of the local government, Mr. A.O Bankole, said adequate sensitization had been given to the people about the programme and warned defaulters: “We need to appeal to them to conform to the rules and regulations concerning the provision of sanitary latrines for the usage of their household. If they fail to comply, they will be prosecuted because that is the last stage for the environmental health officers.
“The case will be taken to the magistrate court. Formerly we have been using the customary court but due to their closeness to these people, they are being lenient. If found guilty, the magistrate will fine a defaulter with the amount stipulated in the provisions of the Environmental Sanitation Edict of 1984, which can be up to N100, 000.”
Baale of Opeji, Chief Razaq Adesola Obe, disclosed that almost all the 200 houses with about 500 occupants in communities under his jurisdiction have constructed pit latrines: “We built the latrines with little resources available to us after being enlightened of the process by those in charge of the programme. The benefit is for us rural dwellers and not for those that brought it. How would someone not have a toilet at home?”
The Baale of Alagbagba, Chief Emmanuel Alabi Sowunmi, however, lamented that some disgruntled elements were sabotaging the efforts of government.
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