The Ogun government has warned that landlords of houses without toilets in the state should be prepared to forfeit the property to the government.
The Commissioner for the Environment, Mr Ola Oresanya, issued the warning in a statement made available to newsmen in Abeokuta.
Oresanya said that the warning was part of the government’s measures meant to eradicate open defecation in the state.
“Henceforth, old houses with collapsed toilets and without provision for new ones and new houses built without toilets will be forfeited to the State Government.
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“We are warning the landlords of those houses to either construct toilets or convert rooms to serve as toilets or risk forfeiting their homes to the State Government,” he said.
According to him, the State Government, after several warnings and abatement notices for several months, have given them enough period for compliance, hence, any landlord that refuses to comply will have to face the consequence.
“We have given the landlords a period for compliance, so we are not ready to persuade anyone again to do what is needed.
“To avoid doubt, we are now making it public again that any old or new houses without toilets will be forfeited to the government.
“After all, the state’s environmental laws allowed the government to take over such homes in the public interest,” Oresanya said.
He also said that the landlords may be charged for endangering the lives of people living in his or her community.
He, however, called on the state’s residents, Community Development Associations (CDAs) and the Central Development Councils (CDCs) to cooperate with the State Government.
