The Bauchi State Government has cleared the massive toxic waste dump that had endangered patients and healthcare workers at the Yelwa Domiciliary Clinic, following an urgent alarm raised earlier today by the Take It Back Movement (TIB), Bauchi State Chapter.
Earlier on Sunday, TIB issued a strongly worded statement titled “Take It Back Movement Demands Immediate Clearance of Massive Toxic Waste Dump Endangering Yelwa Domiciliary Clinic Patients and Staff.” The Movement described the situation as “a severe and preventable public health crisis unfolding in Yelwa.”
According to the statement, “a massive, illegally piled and actively burned garbage dump is blocking access and spewing toxic smoke directly onto the premises of the Yelwa Domiciliary Clinic.”
They warned that burning mixed waste, particularly plastics, was releasing “highly carcinogenic air pollutants directly into the path of vulnerable patients, including pregnant women and infants, as well as the clinic’s dedicated healthcare staff.”
The movement further stressed that the environment around any primary healthcare facility “must be held to the highest standard of public safety,” adding that “allowing toxic smoke and mountains of waste to persist metres away from a clinic is a clear dereliction of duty by the responsible agencies.”
TIB also noted that the dumpsite was serving as a “breeding ground for disease vectors,” while obstructing critical emergency access to the clinic.
In its demands, the Movement gave a 72-hour ultimatum, insisting that Governor Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed must “direct BASEPA to mobilize trucks and resources for the total clearance of the waste dump site today.”
They also called on the Bauchi State Environmental Protection Agency (BASEPA) and the Bauchi State Primary Health Care Development Agency (BSPHCDA) to install permanent drainage systems, lockable bins, and establish a verified weekly waste collection schedule along Yelwan Makaranta Road.
TIB further demanded that both the Director-General of BASEPA and the Executive Chairman of BSPHCDA appear at the Yelwa Domiciliary Clinic within three days to publicly present a remediation timeline.
The statement was electronically signed by Nazif Bashi, State Coordinator of the TIB Movement, Bauchi Chapter.
In a later development on Sunday evening, the TIB Coordinator, Nazif Bashir, confirmed that the toxic waste had been cleared.
Taking to his official Facebook page, he wrote: “Dear DG Dr. Muhammad Mahmood Bose, the Take It Back Movement commends your swift and commendable response in clearing the toxic dumpsite at the Yelwa Domiciliary Clinic. This immediate action is a true victory for public health in Bauchi State. Thank you for prioritizing our citizens.”
He, however, urged authorities to ensure the issue does not recur, calling on BASEPA to publicly disclose the new waste collection point and its long-term waste management plan.
“To ensure this crisis never recurs, we respectfully urge Bauchi State Environmental Protection Agency to publicly announce the EXACT LOCATION of the new collection center, and the plan/timeline for installing permanent bins and drains, by 10:00 AM tomorrow,” he wrote. “Let’s make this solution permanent.”
Yelwa Clinic is in Birshi, Bauchi State, situated nearby to Assemblies of God Church, as well as near Thomas Moore College of Health Technology.
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