OCHA Brigade enforces tax payment, orderliness – Okonkwo

THE seventh edition of Anambra Scorecard had the MD/Superitendent General of OCHA Brigade, Chief Kenneth Okonkwo as the guest on the Hot Seat. It was an interesting experience having over 7,000 Ndi Anambra from all over the world evaluating Operation Clean and Healthy Anambra State (OCHA), a unified enforcement agency recently established by Gov Willie Obiano. Participants in the Anambra Scorecard, an online live and interactive programme anchored on the traditional village square of Ndi Anambra on Facebook, were amazed to discover that OCHA Brigade was set up to enforce discipline and orderliness, stop illegal and multiple taxation among other things.
According to Chief Okonkwo, OCHA Brigade has come to enforce cleanliness and orderliness as a culture among the residents of Anambra State and to facilitate the arrest, prosecution and payment of fine of:
1.    Any person or group of persons that engage in illegal street trading or hawking
2.    Any person or group of persons that erect illegal structures on drainage, walkways and waters channels.
3.    Any person or group of persons that destroy the beautification projects on our road sites and road medians.
4.    Any person that violate the monthly environmental sanitation day laws of the state.
5.    Any person or group of persons that defecate or urinate in unauthorised places.
6.    Any person or group of persons that dump refuse of any description on any road, street, drainage, canal, walkway, etc.
7.    Enforce compliance to the payment of various State taxes, duties and levies to include those of Ministries of Health, Environment, Information, Board of Internal Revenue, Anambra State Urban Development Board, Awka Capital Development Agency, ASWAMA, Trade, Commerce and Industries”.
OCHA BRIGADE was inaugurated on December 5th 2014 by Chief Willie Obiano and all her activities are backed by law. For rapid response, the Brigade can be contacted via 08160004542.
The Anambra Scorecard which provides thousands of Ndi Anambra both home and in Diaspora, opportunity to effectively engage their government is being moderated by Ifeanyi Aniagoh of www.ifeadinmesi.com.
Here are hot questions thrown at Chief Kenneth Okonkwo by the online audience and his cool replies:
Why is Onitsha still dirty?
   Waste disposal is not part of OCHA Brigade’s responsibility. OCHA Brigade is a unified enforcement agency of the state. However, I am aware that Onitsha and its environs will return to how Gov Obiano want it to look before Xmas this year as soon as the rain reduces.
Sir, First, I have not really witnessed where OCHA Brigade team carry out their functions as to keeping the environment clean or ensuring that Ndi Anambra maintain discipline in area of cleanliness. I expect them to look out for individuals who litre our environment especially hawkers, drivers,commuters and above all passengers who through the vehicle windows, throwaway dirt along our roads and streets with impunity. I stand to be corrected but what is OCHA brigade doing to arrest this ugly situation which we all see every day?
OCHA Brigade has been on their toes doing as you rightly expected. You might not have seen them but we have been working to our full capacity. As you may know, OCHA Brigade is made up of graduates drawn from other Ministries. Sooner or later, as Gov Obiano has approved, more youths will be engaged and trained to join the team. By then, more of our actions will be seen and all you observed will be bygone.
How do Anambra residents comply with the execution of your duties in the state? And what support do you want from the government and-good people of Anambra State to make your work easier?
It has not been easy my brother. What we need is cooperation in every ramification. Report any abnormalities; blockage of drains, disorderliness, dirty environment, illegal collection of duties or fake emblem, indiscipline, etc. Simply contact OCHA Brigade.
How do you sensitise the people to comply to the rules? And how do you checkmate the activities of your men?
We preach our gospel via radios, flyers, TV and now I am here. This is in addition to many other engagement platforms.
Why do we still have kiosks still littered all over Onitsha and why all the shades by stall owners?
Government follows due process and plans its activities. Presently, Anambra State Government has assigned the offices in charge of planning to mark all the illegal structures. When they are done with that, we will embark on enforcement. I can assure you that they are already doing the planning.
I have got a couple of issues that bothers me about the activities of OCHA Brigade. Firstly, on the 2nd September 2015, members of OCHA Brigade at Ekwulobia Unit apprehended my vehicle on the grounds that I parked by the roadside. They took me to Ekwulobia Township Stadium where they told me that my penalty is N50, 000 fine. When I pleaded with them, they stepped down to N10, 000 and finally, they collected N6, 000 from me. Sir, I know I defaulted and was willing to face the law but was amazed when they asked me to go without issuing me receipt for the payment made. For this reasons, my questions are as follows; 1. Is there no law that stipulates fixed & approved penalty fees for 1st offenders as in FRSC? 2. The members of OCHA Brigade, are they empowered to receive penalty fee payment from the defaulters? 3. Are members of OCHA Brigade empowered to fix penalty fees at their discretion and to negotiate it downwards? 4. Are agents of OCHA Brigade empowered to receive penalty money without recourse to receipts as the evidence of the transaction? Sir, I’m expecting your kindest response to the issues raised.
There are great differences between OCHA Brigade and A TMA, the State Traffic Agency. Don’t mistake anyone for the other. OCHA Brigade does not do such, rather we arrest anyone that is involved in such act. If you ever get involved in a situation like that, put a call to OCHA Brigade and see us in action. Presently a lot of such fake persons are in the police net courtesy of our efforts. Gov Obiano’s effort to rid the State of touts and illegal collectors of fines and taxes is being enforced by OCHA Brigade and not the other way round. However, in our line of duties, OCHA Brigade has stated tariffs and does not collect cash.
Sir I noticed that some individuals still dump refuse inside gutter and along the road, even passengers do that as well, my question is, any punishment for offenders, I mean people being caught in the act? Secondly, I noticed that OCHA Brigade has not been active as they before, please what has been making your workers to slack in their duties?
Like I said earlier, we are yet to round up the training of our new set of employees which will give job to about 200 Anambra Youths. Therefore, we can’t cover everywhere now but in short a time, OCHA Brigade will cover the whole Anambra State.
I want to actually commend you and your team for doing wonderfully well in enforcement of cleaner environment But I want to ask, so many a times, your group were accused of collecting levies from shops and markets. Is it part of your job?
We are established to enforce payment of taxes and levies for the state. Whenever you see the OCHA Brigade in markets or shops, they must be there in company of the ministry or department responsible for such collection. We are only an enforcement agency helping the Ministries or Agencies to collect their levies.
Last two months, I saw some people bringing down their containers and makeshift shops on the orders of government to take them away. But since then, there has not been any enforcement on the area, would the planning take eternity because the ones that destroyed their shops out of panic are now grumbling.
   Persons that have removed their illegal structures should continue to do the right thing because the government will not only demolish the illegal structures but will also prosecute the owners for violating laws.
It appears that as much as your agency works on bringing sanity to the polity, defaulters keep frustrating your good works. What laws apply to the defaulters? Did the State Assembly pass any law against defaulters because some people have said that your agency is not empowered by law to deal with defaulters?
The Agency is the unified enforcement Agency for the Government. As such, we enforce for all the Ministries in line with the laws protecting such enforcement. Any work being assigned to OCHA Brigade is in writing and protected by Law. Every Ministry is represented in OCHA Brigade’s office.
Coming to Onitsha, precisely Fegge areas, there is a refuse dump ground near Silas works street but we find out that refuse are normally littered throughout that area. So sir what is the arrangement of your team to find a big better dumping ground for these refuse instead of this refuse scattering and causing blockage and discomfort to the people living around that area?
Ministry of Environment is working on that.
Sir, almost all community markets in Anambra State has no proper sanitation systems e.g toiletries, refuse systems and fire equipment, room. Secondly, our state roads both old and newly constructed are heaps of red sand besides them and which makes our track roads become an eye sour.
I have attempted your question earlier. Ministries in charge of refuse disposal and planning are handling those issues. Any time they need our assistance we will join to enforce the laws.
Ezepue Amarachi