Oyo house of Assembly has mandated the state Ministry of Environment and Water resources to, among other measures, seal off churches and mosques that continue to flout the environmental rules on noise pollution.
The assembly at its plenary presided over by Speaker, Honourable Micheal Afternoon, hinged this call on revelation that the activities of religious institutions constitute about 70 percent of noise pollution in the state.
Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Mr Isaac Ishola, who appeared at plenary had disclosed that other sources of noise pollution identified were disc jockeys, telecommunication companies, generating sets and vehicular hooting.
Ishola noted that following complaints from residents, 24 religious institutions had been given abatement notice and would be prosecuted for noise pollution.
He decried non-adherence of some religious institutions to reducing regularity of their vigils, acquiring acoustic furniture, internal speakers and padded walls, as well as disc jockeys who exceed stated decibels.
Though he hinted of the setting up of a mobile court to prosecute offenders, Ishola bemoaned many instances of offenders who fail to honour its invitation since 2015.
Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Mr Toye Arulogun, who also appeared at the plenary, admonished residents to continually whistle blow of incidences of noise pollution in their areas.
Members of the Assembly, in their various submissions, charged the concerned ministries and agencies of the state government to be firm in sanctioning persons/organisations who flout sanitation regulations, while calling for more sensitization campaigns.
Member representing Surulere/Ogo Oluwa constituency, Honourable Peter Oyetunji had earlier observed that enforcement of sanitation rules had been poor in recent past.
