Civil Servants In A Fix At Federal Secretariat Over Use Of Toilets

 

Civil servants at the Phase One section of the Federal Secretariat in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) are passing through difficult time in answering nature’s call over the delay in the completion of toilet facilities in the complex.

They therefore called on the contractor handling the project, Julius Berger, to fast track the exercise to ease their ordeals.

When correspondent visited the government complex, it was discovered that a few sections of the toilets were completed and already in use, but not enough to serve the entire staff from various ministries, departments and agencies that are in the building.

The Phase One of the complex which have been having toilet challenge for over three years now, houses offices of federal ministries including the Ministry of Niger Delta, Ministry of Labour and Employment, Ministry of Aviation, Ministry of Women Affairs and Police Service Commission.

A senior official of one of the ministries, Abdullahi Sanusi, said that apart from the fact that the civil servants in the complex do not know when the renovation of the toilets will be completed, they face the daily challenge of looking for alternative toilets to use when they are seriously pressed.

“Julius Berger has been working on the toilets for more than five months now, but their work is too slow. So, you find out that people now decided to be using the few toilets that have been fixed and it is not easy at all. But no civil servant to my knowledge defecate openly.

“Imagine, the renovation started more than five months ago, and we are still waiting for the job to be completed. We are appealing to Julius Berger construction company to fast-track the renovation job given to them by the federal government.

“Because we the civil servants in this complex are not finding it easy at all. Imagine you are seriously pressed and you go to toilets and people are inside the toilets. You and others will have to wait endlessly for the people inside the toilet to finish before you make use of it. It is not good for a working environment like this,” he said.

Another civil servant, Mr Donald Okoh, said that the challenge had become unbearable, but expressed hope that the management would speak to the construction company to ensure that they increased their pace in the renovation process.

“I am appealing to the management of the secretariat to do something about this issue before it gets out of hands. We cannot continue to move from one end to the other just to use toilets. Something, I even have to go as far as to the public toilet inside Eagle square before I can ease myself,” he said.

He also said that hoodlums who had taken over the gigantic underground car park close to a mini market, directly behind the secretariat complex, which has been under construction for years, are to be blamed for open defecation around the office premises mostly at night.

 

“If people are talking of open defecation in this area, you cannot put the blame on respected civil servants. Because they can easily go to the public toilets at the Eagle square to pay and use the toilets. Also, we make use of some completed toilets in this complex.

“People to be blamed are the hoodlums who have taken over the underground garage under construction for God knows how long. They are the ones who defecate anywhere they have access to, since they do not have any toilets to use,” he said.

A contract staff of Julius Berger, who preferred anonymity said that the company is doing everything within its power to ensure that the renovation is completed within the shortest time, appealing for patience from the civil servants.