Urban disorder: Deadline to perpetrators

After field visit to Pont Blanchisseur and Rue Roi Njoya, authorities gave firm instructions.

Routine monthly urban disorder check in Douala has resumed after three months consecrated to sensitise inhabitants on the new Douala Urban Plan drawn in 2015. During the field visit of the committee charged with the fight against urban disorder in Douala dubbed “Plateforme d’actions de lutte contre le désordre urbain” headed by the Senior Divisional Officer for Wouri, Naseri Paul Bea, firm instructions and deadline were dished out to perpetrators.

At Pont Blanchisseur situated at Dakar in the Douala III Council area, occupants were given two weeks to leave without which they will face the heavy arm of the law. The Pont Blanchisseur area will be tidied and settle wood dealers scattered all over the Douala III area. At Rue Roi Njoya in the New-Bell neighbourhood in Douala II, caterpillars were doing finishing touches on the road while a two-storey dilapidating building constructed with ‘substandard material’ according to authorities has to be demolished since it is a danger not only to occupants, but also to neighbours, passersby and vehicles.

Later during a briefing in the SDO’s office, various platform committees, Mayors and Divisional Officers of all six subdivisions painted a picture of the prevailing urban disorder in their spheres of intervention and proposed solutions. Some of the diehard problems raised included traffic congestion, haphazard parking, displaying goods on carriage way in markets beside the road, anarchical disposal of hospital waste, overflow garbage bins, poor drainages, indiscriminate felling of mangrove and bad fishing habits.

After listening to the problems and proposed solutions, the President of the Platform, Naseri Paul Bea gave three months to councils where hawkers still occupy carriage ways along markets to clear the areas or have their funds for the fight against urban disorder retrieved. Though the impact of the fight against urban disorder since creation is not 100 per cent, the Government Delegate to the Douala City Council, Dr Fritz Ntone Ntone said they will redouble efforts and be proactive to prevent disorder. “Breaking a house at the zincking level is not the same as if one anticipated,” he concluded.