Enugu: Between noise pollution policy and religious censorship
Worried by thousands of decibels pumped into the air by nightclubs, discotheques, and religious organisations, the Enugu State has vowed to ensure that sanity reigns statewide. But the authorities must convince various stakeholders of no hidden agenda, LAWRENCE NJOKU reports.
Owners of residential property that encircle one of the top hotels in the Independence Layout area of Enugu, Enugu State, last August, raised the alarm over what they termed “excessive noise” caused by outdoor music from the hotel.
The worried residents maintained that they could not sleep at night, especially on weekends, due to the loud music produced by a live band that performs in the hotel’s garden.
They further claimed that all their pleas to the hotel’s management have been rebuffed in no uncertain terms, insisting that the hotel does not care a hoot about what they are passing through as a result of the noise pollution.
These residents are not alone as several drinking joints and open bars in the state capital have continued to generate so many nuisances with the ear-piercing music emitted by live bands, especially at weekends.
A four-storey building at Mayor Bus Stop, along Agbani Road, is occupied by some churches that hoist various shapes and sizes of horn speakers on the building. These loudspeakers produce disturbing sounds, especially on Wednesdays and Sundays when they conduct their weekly services.
A lawyer, who operates a chamber in one of the apartments in the compound, lamented that the level of sound from the building is so disturbing that “I am looking for any means possible to relocate.”
Those who live on Owerri Road, Asata, and Bishop Anyogu Street, in Uwani have often complained about the loudness of horn speakers mounted on mosques in the area, especially during their early morning prayers and worship.
Along the Main Market Road, Enugu, where the Central Library is located, transporters and local council officials have capitalised on the lax implementation of building and environmental laws to encircle the library with motor parks, making it difficult for library users to use the facility peacefully.
It is issues of this nature that forced the Enugu Capital Territory Development Authority (ECTDA) to recently convene a town hall meeting that comprised religious leaders, hotel proprietors, clubs, event centre owners, as well as, restaurant operators where the agency tabled the state government’s anti-noise pollution policy.
Chairman of the ECTDA, Uche Anya, informed the gathering that the state government was no longer comfortable with how the right of privacy of other residents was being abused in the guise of entertainment, business, prayers, and worship among others. He stated that the government was therefore prepared to regulate the level of sound being emitted into the environment.
Accordingly, it handed down a 90-day ultimatum for all loudspeakers hoisted outdoors to be removed, while every outfit must regulate, or be mindful of the level of sound that it emits, or face legal severe sanctions. The enforcement of this order is effective November 15, 2024.
Ahead of the enforcement, Anya also said that part of the control measures is to engage with defaulting outfits, especially religious organisations and get them to limit the level of sound that they produce so as not to interfere with the rights of other residents.
Anya regretted that his office has received no less than 1,000 petitions from residents, who complain about their inability to sleep at night because of the noise pollution emanating from business operators.
“One of such prominent citizens is the Bishop of Enugu Catholic Diocese. He said he couldn’t sleep, and that he was surrounded by nightclubs. He said that if I could solve the problem he would pray for the business operators and their businesses. The state governor also said that he can’t treat files at night because of the noise from such business premises close to the Governor’s Lodge.
“We need a bubbling nightlife, but not the nightmare that we are experiencing. We want a city that doesn’t sleep, but our children must be able to sleep, and to do their homework. So, we need to agree on how to run our nightlife without disturbing others,” Anya stressed.
He asked the business operators to embrace acoustic technology for the operation of indoor loud music, and stick to their approvals by the town planning authority. And for those who do not have approvals, he urged them to urgently approach the agency for approval, warning that any violation of the new rules would attract the closure of such a premise, and a N5 million fine.
The National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) in her Noise Standards and Control Regulations 2009, Part II – Control and Mitigation of Noise 5 (i) states that: “No person shall emit or cause to be emitted or permit the emission of noise resulting from any action or activity that is a disturbance to the receptor, or in the neighbourhood for more than two minutes.”
It further listed yelling, laughing, clapping, shouting, hooting, pounding, whistling, and singing, selling or advertising by shouting or outcry or amplified sound; operating any equipment in connection with construction; detonating fireworks or explosive devices not used in construction; operating any auditory signaling device, including to the ringing of bells or gongs and the blowing of horns or siren or whistles or the reproduction and amplification of sound among disturbances to the environment. It also specified the level of sound expected at any point in time during gatherings.
The gross failure of the state government to enforce extant laws, regulations, and standards has over the years, led to environmental abuse, and also created an atmosphere where emerging businesses and establishments tend to discomfort residents without any qualms.
Facilities that were designed and approved for residential purposes in some locations have now been converted to other purposes without recourse to the environment.
It is in this light that some stakeholders view this move by the government as a welcome development, while some others including religious organisations faulted the policy.
“We must be very careful”, a cleric, Pastor Smart Eze, said. “This is a subtle move against Christianity. Very soon they will ban morning cry (morning preaching). After that they will ban open-air crusades in the guise that it is a disturbance to the environment, and they will require preachers to obtain licenses from the state government before they could preach. Unfortunately, this is happening in a Christian state,” he alleged.
Eze, who is the head Pastor of the End Time Ministers and Deliverance Ministry, Enugu, said that those behind the move are not happy with the progress of the church in the state.
Echoing a similar sentiment, the State Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Rev Emmanuel Edeh, described the move as unfortunate, stressing that officials of the government agency did not accord any measure of respect to the church and their leaders before going public with the plan.
He stated: “I want to say that it is very unfortunate that church leaders were not consulted over this development. It was a publication that was made from the invitation of some people that I read about. We were not consulted by the chairman of the ECTDA to attend such a meeting. I say again that it is unfortunate, and I want to say that he should not have approached the matter the way he did. There should have been a measure of respect for the church and church leaders in this state because we have supported every government of the state.”
Edeh insisted that the church should be deleted from the list of organisations or institutions creating noise in the state, stressing that “worship or prayer to the creator of the universe cannot be equated as noise making by any standard.
“It is an insult to label what goes on in the church as noise-making. Let the church be deleted from among those outfits said to constitute noise in Enugu State so that heaven will not be angry with anybody. It is a very big insult to say that the worship of God could be tagged as noise-making or noise pollution. That is why I said that there should have been an appropriate way of approaching the church because the government knows us.
“If something is being done in an extraordinary way to inconvenience people, you know that the right thing to do is to invite us and discuss with us to find ways out of it. But when I saw those publications, all I asked myself was, ‘has it gotten to this point? How can you equate the worship of God with playing music in beer parlours or nightclubs when you need to meet religious leaders and operators of these places at the same time?’ It does not show respect.”
It is even irritating for you to refer to the horn speakers mounted outside by churches as constituting noise. It is insulting to insinuate that the worship of God is noise-making,” he remarked.
He said that CAN had not received any complaints or petitions from residents about sound from churches, adding however, “I am not saying that there cannot not be situations that could be described as excessive, but there are ways to handle things.
“My worry is the fact that the agency claimed it received over a thousand petitions, but of the lot, it never cared one day to call church leaders to discuss those petitions. We have always had an understanding with the state government. We are obedient people and law-abiding citizens.
“Some of the churches were approved by other agencies of government to build; some were land donated by their owners and what have you. So, you will need to find out the purpose clause of each property.” He dismissed insinuations that Governor Peter Mbah is against the church, stressing that on the contrary, he (the governor) has been a source of encouragement to the church with his development efforts and support of church activities.
But breaking ranks with Rev Edeh, is John Nwobodo, a lawyer, who welcomed the regulation of noise in the state as a good policy. According to him: “Noise comes within the scope of a nuisance for which provision is made under the Tort Law of Enugu State. So, this is a welcome development because noise control is important to ensure non-interference with the enjoyment and occupation of premises. Noise pollution is a tortious act and effective control measures will curb the nuisance.”
Although it is not clear how the state government intends to enforce the anti-noise pollution policy, there are fears that it may dig into the original purpose clause for some properties and businesses in the state, especially those cited in the residential areas that are producing disturbing sounds.
For Emeka Ikedum, a resident of the state: “Whatever the government will do to sanitise the state and rid it of excessive noise and sounds is welcomed. It should not also stop there. Some people deliberately block roads in the guise of celebrating one thing or the other, especially at weekends. Something should also be done about such people. There are events and entertainment centres where such celebrations should be taken to, not on public roads. So, I entreat them to consider this while enforcing the policy against those polluting the state with noise.”
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