The Jesus Holy Ministry, an Aba based church on Thursday March 20, 2025, petitioned the Abia State Government over a serious health threat posed to its over two thousand worshipers by the unregulated activities of a neighbouring poultry farm.
The Christian Organization further accused the State Ministry of Environment and its officials of “going blind” to the serious health challenges being faced by thousands of worshippers and residents, owing to the unwholesome and unhygienic activities of the poultry farm owners.
The Church called for urgent intervention by the Abia state government and other relevant authorities, stressing that it will save its members from being consumed by an outbreak of epidemic.
Our correspondent reports that in a petition made available to this medium and directed to the Abia State Commissioner for Environment, Philemon Asonye Ogbonna, dated January 30, 2025, the church noted that the indiscriminate dumping of poultry wastes on open surface and their subsequent exposure to sun and rain with its attendant offensive odour and harmful bacteria have exposed its worshipers and guests to serious health challenges.
According to the Ministry’s lawyer, E J Obi in the petition, “My instruction is that my client is a Christian Organization with well over two thousand members/worshipers who attend the ministry’s religious activities regularly and besides the regular religious activities, the ministry also has facilities/clinic that takes care of the sick and psychosis.
“My client further instruction is that her said ministry has existed at the said address for well over thirty (30) years now and for a larger part of this time it has enjoyed peace, tranquility, cordial relationship and respect/regard with her neighbours until few years ago when one Mr Chijioke Simon, and his wife who are livestock/poultry farmers set up a large scale poultry farm having well over five thousand (5,000) poultry birds adjacent my client ministry/building.
“With the passage of time, and without any proper environmental/health safety measures on ground at the poultry farm, the owner of the said farm and their workers began dumping poultry wastes indiscriminately on open surface, and exposed the said poultry wastes to the sun and rains with its attendant odour/harmful bacteria, highly polluted water that flows out from the farm, and being that my client ministry/building is closest to the poultry farm, members of my client ministry became the first recipient of the harmful toxics coming out from the said poultry farm, and which has caused serious health challenges to members of the ministry who attend weekly activities of the.”
The Church further noted that several efforts made to get the farm owners to take steps and halt the nuisance have so far been ignored.
It added that it had earlier petitioned the Inspector General of Police (IGP), demanding for an investigation into the alleged harmful activities of the poultry farm managers, but all to no avail.
The petition to the Commissioner further reads, “However, it came to the knowledge of my client that the said farm owners have been recalcitrant, because they claimed they have the backing of your office/ministry (Abia state Environment Ministry) to continue in their act of polluting the environment and causing health challenges to the neighborhood and particularly members of my client’s ministry who are made to inhale the toxic odours emanating from the poultry farm as a result of the poor sanitary condition of the place.
“Their claim is further strengthened by the fact that when the police from the office of the Commissioner of Police came on investigation with regard to an earlier petition, and arrested one of the owners, Mrs Chijioke Simon sometime in November 20024, my client observed that you (Commissioner for Environment) called the police officers to who came for the arrest to release the woman; that the matter is not a police one, but a civil which only your ministry can handle.
“Despite the refusal of the police to release the said woman and finally taking her to Umuahia, my client was reliably informed that you instructed a lawyer from the Ministry of Justice in the person of Barr Nwaejike who is attached to your office as ASEPA prosecutor to go to the police headquarters in Umuahia and inform the police again that the matter for which the woman was arrested is a matter within the jurisdiction of your office/Ministry to handle and that the police should hand off the matter,” the petition further reads.”
The Church, however, expressed deep disappointment that despite stopping the police from looking into its complaints, the Supervising Ministry of Environment has so far refused to wade in to save the lives of over two thousand of its worshipers under threat.
“Sir, despite the fact that you informed the police that the matter is within your jurisdiction to handle, and in addition sent a state counsel to formally bring that to the notice of the police, you and your office have done nothing whatsoever towards addressing the complaint rather my client on weekly basis see your officers from the Environmental Health at Aba North led by one Uzoma Nwaejike has turned the said poultry farm into a cash cow, where they visit on weekly basis to collect money/inducement and closing their eyes to the very danger posed to the health of members of the public and my client members in particular.”
In its petition, the church regretted that the Abia state Environment Ministry and its officials have abdicated their responsibility of protecting public health through a safe environment.
The Church has called on the Abia state government, and other relevant bodies to ensure the relocation of the said poultry farm out of its vicinity, a densely populated residential area.
The church has vowed to resort to a legal action, to protect over two thousand of its worshipers, should the appropriate authorities fail to take action within a reasonable period.
As at the time of filing to this report, both the Commissioner for Information and Operators of the said poultry outlet could not be reached for comments.
Our correspondent reports that an earlier scheduled visit or media briefing with the Commissioner at the Church premises on Tuesday, March 18, 2025, could not hold, while a rescheduled visit for Wednesday March 19, was also aborted.
This medium reports that no reasons were adduced for the halting of what was supposed to be a trouble-shooting effort by the Commissioner.
