The gutters are dirty due to the actions of certain users who throw all kinds of garbage there. During the rainy season which is ending, these gutters are mostly in poor condition, blocked with nauseating odors in places. In addition, this poor maintenance of the gutters damages the roads in the city. We made the observation this Wednesday, October 18, 2023.
The unbearable smell of certain gutters in the city of Bobo-Dioulasso, as they say in the jargon, can wake the dead. Residents of the city’s fruit and vegetable market can attest to this. They who have for four moons cohabited with the smells of apple and cabbage leaves coming directly from said market. The case of the gutters surrounding the fruit and vegetable market is not an isolated case, because the fact is recurrent in almost all the districts of Bobo-Dioulasso which benefit from gutters. If the actions favor this, are attributable to the municipality, they are even more attributable to local residents, to the population in general.
The gutters are transformed into trash cans by more than one household in Bobo-Dioulasso, this is a fact. With the rains, the garbage thrown there gives off nauseating odors and makes the gutters nests for mosquitoes which make us sick (example of dengue fever). The gutters which were built to allow rainwater to flow away, are unfortunately now being diverted from their primary purpose into rubbish bins, a source of unsanitary conditions. Impossible to stay for long near these stinking gutters full of mosquitoes which cause diseases. All this is the fault of local residents through their uncivil behavior.
Clogged gutters, rainwater on our roads
At this level also the observation is clear. After each rain, water no longer circulates in the few gutters available to the city of Bobo-Dioulasso, because they are clogged with garbage of all kinds. The roads are then submerged by water. We must therefore wait for the water to finish flowing on the track before the population can go about their business. These same waters leave behind them potholes which end up getting bigger. As a result, impassable roads causing numerous traffic accidents. Garbage and household waste preventing the evacuation of water causes the gutters to burst. Taking care of these gutters should be essential for the entire population. The population must no longer throw garbage into the gutters, for their own health. Likewise, the authorities must make cleaning these gutters a priority.
Furthermore, note that despite the efforts of the authorities to build gutters in the city, certain sectors do not have them. The lack of gutters in these areas causes the roads to be damaged by rainwater and makes them even more impassable. Taking these paths becomes an ordeal. This is also the ordeal of the inhabitants of sector 23 where there are no pipes. The same is true of sectors 32, 33 and even certain parts of the Belleville district.
Zenabou SANA
Oumou-Koulsoum OUEDRAOGO/Interns
