Cemeteries Now Dump sites, Hideouts for criminals – Clerics
Cemeteries Now Dump sites, Hideouts for criminals – Clerics
By May Etim
Worried over the unfortunate conversion of cemeteries into refuse dump site, a team of Kaduna based clerics, from the Islamic and Christianity religion who took a tour of some cemeteries, have decry the deplorable condition of cemeteries in the country.
The team embarks on the tour with journalists to sensitize the general public on the health hazards and dangers of excreting in cemeteries.
According to the team, hundreds of cemeteries in Nigeria are in a very poor and bizarre condition as most of them have turn out to be latrines, refuse dumps, hideouts for criminals and Rituals, which has pose a threat and concern to Nigerians.
The group kicked against dumping of refuse on graveyards by residents of due to lack or non availability of toilets in their houses by some landlords.
Addressing journalists after the tour of some of the graveyards within the metropolis, Pastor Yohanna Buru, General Overseer of Christ Evangelical Intercessory Fellowship Ministry Church, who is also the team leader of the clerics said a graveyard is supposed to be a clean and sacred environment and not a refuse dump sites or latrines.
According to him, “a graveyard must be properly secured and fenced to avoid trespassers or encroachment, but today the reverse is the case, as most of our cemeteries have no fence, and too expose to all sort of dirtiness.
Pastor Buru expressed worry over what he referred to as neglect of Nigerian graveyard sanitation. He said majority of the cemeteries in Kaduna and other parts of Nigeria are in bad condition and full of dirt’s resulting from lack of sanitation exercise by some worshipers across religious faiths.
“It is regrettable that our graveyards are not looking attractive due to the ‘I don’t care attitudes’ of many residents that have turned cemeteries into refuse ground with dangerous criminals and ritualists are sighted around cemeteries at night, with their nefarious activities.”
“Nigeria is one of the most religious country in this planet, but people don’t show love to the death once they’re gone, adding that there are many bushes and holes in our graveyards that need to be filled with sand but nothing has been done to save the situation.
“The surrounding of most of the cemeteries are not good looking due to lack of sanitation exercise by both worshippers.
“Government should secure and keep the “final home clean and tidy.
“When we grow old, God willing, we are going to be permanently laid to rest in those grave yards so we must keep them clean”.
“Government and religious leaders should educate and sensitize citizens as well as worshippers on the importance of cleaning graveyards.
“There is the need for every state government to extend monthly sanitation to graved-yards in other to immensely save the poor state of Nigerian cemeteries from turning to a refuse ground instead of graved-yards,” Pastor Bury said.
Similarly, Mallam Alaramma Abdulrahman Mohammad Bichi, a Muslim scholar from Barnawa, and a member of the your expressed dissatisfaction over the condemnable attitude of some people that usually excrete at the cemeteries.
He emphasized on the need for Nigerians to use every last Saturday of the month for cleaning the cemeteries
General survey of the Nigerian graved-yard shows that, there is the need for every one to donate his support to the fencing of all the cemeteries, in other to protect them against all forms of dirt, and ritual attack on death bodies
