The unhealthy act of urinating on the streets brings into focus the need to establish more public toilets at various points in town with a view to discouraging this unhygienic trend and promote sanitation.

We see on a daily basis, people urinating on fences around decent public places, notably car parks, junctions, and even on roadsides. Such practices are prevalent in major towns in the country, most notably in the Greater Banjul Area.  Many people are of the view that the increased urbanisation is a contributory factor to the unhealthy act, while yet others insist that the lack of enough public toilets in our towns is the main factor. Those who spoke to this reporter unanimously condemned the practice of urinating on the streets and appealed to the relevant authorities to build public toilets in order to curb what they called the "ugly act". It is for this reason that this reporter went ahead to gauge the views of various stakeholders and authorities on this issue

NEA's position
The National Environment Agency (NEA) under the Ministry of Forestry and the Environment is the government institution responsible for the sustainable management and sanitation of our environment. Muhammeh Jallum Jabang, programme officer, Environmental Quality, at the NEA told this reporter that the agency is concerned about the issue, and made allusion to the anti-littering law, which he said has a wide range of provisions, among them street urination.

"Street urination is very rampant especially in the Greater Banjul Area. One of the reasons could be attributed to the attitude of the people towards their environment, and the second issue is that the facilities [public toilets] are lacking. People need facilities because if you are advising them not to do x, y and z, you must have a solution for them," Jabang told this reporter at his office at the NEA headquarters in Kanifing.

"It is a natural call and  for that being the case the facilities have to be there. In the developed countries they have provided such facilities so that people would be convenient to use them," he stated, while calling on the municipalities and councils to find ideal places for such facilities. Jabang however stressed that the availability of such facilities would have to go with the proper sanitation measures so as to keep such toilets clean and tidy.

Quizzed on what impact the menace has on our environment and the health implications, the environmentalist replied that urine contains a lot of things such as parasitic organisms, some of which, he added, are microscopic. He also described the offensive smell from urine as something bad. The NEA Programme officer then reminded the public that the Anti-Littering Law is in force and that anyone caught urinating on the street would be taken to court.

KMC
Many people feel it is the responsibility of municipal councils to build public toilets. This reporter caught up with the chief executive officer of the Kanifing Municipal Council (KMC) Abdoulie Sanyang, and asked him about his council?s position on the issue. "As you rightly stated it is a concern but people must change their attitude although we need to put in place some facilities," CEO Sanyang told this reporter at his office at the KMC chambers, adding: "As at now there is no fund for that but it is in our plans to do that. And when we erect these public toilets like in other countries, I think the practice would be minimised."

Religious perspective
Islam is one of the religions that condemn indecency, in particular urinating on the street, which is against its principles and teachings. Imam Momodou Lamin Touray, the president of the Gambia Supreme Islamic Council condemned the act and described it as a "bad practice" that should be avoided by all, especially true Muslims. "The prophet (SAW) said anyone who disturbs people on their street, it is necessary to wish that person bad luck. So anyone who disturbs the people and they wish you bad luck in the name of Sharia, it would be answered," he stated.


Imam Touray condemned the manner some people allow 'waste water' from their houses to flow into the streets, and urged them to be aware of the sin attached to it. He described the act as contrary to the principles of the Sharia, and called on people to strengthen their belief in the religion. He also commented on the health implications attached to such practices. In his view, it is not only the offensive smell that disturbs people, but also the dry dust that comes from the ground urinated on, which is inhaled by passersby. He noted that this causes a lot of health problems.