{"id":1555,"date":"2021-10-08T17:39:11","date_gmt":"2021-10-08T17:39:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stage.thedaylight.org\/wp68\/?p=1555"},"modified":"2021-10-08T17:52:46","modified_gmt":"2021-10-08T17:52:46","slug":"european-ambassador-apologizes-for-dirty-monrovia-comments","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stage.thedaylight.org\/wp68\/2021\/10\/08\/european-ambassador-apologizes-for-dirty-monrovia-comments\/","title":{"rendered":"European Ambassador Apologizes for \u2018Dirty Monrovia\u2019 Comments"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Banner Image: Ambassador Laurent Delahousse, wearing a mask. The DayLight\/James Harding Giahyue<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

By Stephen L Bernard Jr.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

MONROVIA \u2013 Laurent Delahousse, the ambassador of the European Union to Liberia, has apologized for saying that \u201cMonrovia is the dirtiest” he has ever visited.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Delahousse\u2019s statement at the Monrovia City Forum on Solid Waste Management on Tuesday was immediately refuted by Jefferson Koijee, the Mayor of the city. It also came in for mixed reaction on social media, causing him to retract his statement.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I sincerely apologize to the Government of Liberia and anyone feeling misrepresented by these remarks and willingly retract the exaggerated wording I used,\u201d Delahousse said early on Friday morning, three days after he made the controversial remarks. \u201cIn no way were my remarks intended to disparage anyone or to affect the reputation of the beautiful capital city of Liberia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn no way my intention to take a political stance that would be absolutely contrary to my ethics and mission as a diplomat.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The European Union is one of the biggest investors in Liberia\u2019s solid waste management sector, investing 5 million euros in the Greater Monrovia area.<\/a> The money provides support to community-based enterprises and organizations. However, solid waste continues to elude the capital, with garbage littering the streets and blocking drainages on major routes. The markets are even worst, some garbage pilling up for marketplaces<\/a> for months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Delahousse said he had meant to send a \u201cwakeup call\u201d to people living in the Monrovians to change their practices of littering and to improve the waste management system. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Koijee, speaking after Delahousse at the forum, blamed the over-crowdedness of Monrovia\u2014which is home to more than a million people\u2014for the city\u2019s garbage problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Representative Acarous Gray of District No.8 of Montserrado County also refuted the European envoy\u2019s assertions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMonrovia in Africa by all environmental standards and scientific research is not the dirtiest of African cities,\u201d said Gray, whose constituency falls within the heart of the city. \u201cThey are public research records to disprove such an unfortunate assertion.\u2019\u2019 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are no globally accepted rankings for the dirtiest cities on the continent. Liberia did not feature on Forbes\u2019 2008 list<\/a> of dirtiest cities in the world. However, Naijaquest, a Nigerian blog, lists<\/a> Buchanan, Grand Bassa County alongside Abuja, Nigeria and Accra, Ghana.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Banner Image: Ambassador Laurent Delahousse, wearing a mask. The DayLight\/James Harding Giahyue By Stephen L Bernard Jr. MONROVIA \u2013 Laurent Delahousse, the ambassador of the European Union to Liberia, has apologized for saying that \u201cMonrovia is the dirtiest” he has ever visited.    Delahousse\u2019s statement at the Monrovia City Forum on Solid Waste Management on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":1557,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"give_campaign_id":0,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5,73],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1555","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-environment","category-pollution"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\n","aioseo_head_json":{"title":"European Ambassador Apologizes for \u2018Dirty Monrovia\u2019 Comments - The DayLight","description":"Banner Image: Ambassador Laurent Delahousse, wearing a mask. 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