Vendors, Shop Owner Dump Rubbish In Drain

With no proper places to dispose of rubbish roadside vendors and a shop owner of Kinoya, Nasinu, with total disregard for the environment have dumped their litter in drains.

The vendors who are lined along Ratu Dovi Road in Nasinu have been dumping rubbish, urinating and in some case defecating behind their stalls.

This has led to foul smells emanating from the area and rubbish slowly ending up in the Samabula River via Wainivula Creek.

Stall owner Seinimili Ravuama said they threw rubbish because there was no place provided for them to dispose rubbish.

“Why should it be our fault, where is the bin that the municipal council has to provide,” she said.

Rubbish swept into a drain in Vesivesi Road in Kinoya. Photos: Shalveen Chand

Another stall owner Ravi Nand said he too was guilty of doing that because it was the easier thing to do. The stalls are illegally constructed on state reserve.

This was something highlighted by the Attorney-General and Minister for Economy Aiyaz Sayed- Khaiyum in his address to the special administrators.

In Suva, the chair of the special administrator team Isikeli Tikotikodua said they were looking at ridding Suva of such illegal vendors because of such issues.

Also, residents in Kinoya have accused a neighbourhood shop in Vesivesi Road of dumping rubbish into the nearby drains.

When a Fiji Sun news team visited the shop yesterday they found rubbish swept into the drain.

A representative of the shop said they would clear the drain, but denied sweeping the rubbish into the drain.

Rubbish thrown into drains eventually end up in the ocean, however, it also blocks drains and during heavy rain it causes flooding.

Edited by Percy Kean

Feedback: shalveen.chand@fijisun.com.fj