L-R: Secretary General, PSP, Lagos State, Taiye Lolade; President, Association of Waste Managers of Nigeria, Mr. David Oriyomi; Managing Director/CEO, Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA), Mr. Ibrahim Odumboni and Executive Director, Finance, LAWMA, Mr. Kule Adebiyi, during the media parley with the Managing Director/CEO, LAWMA in the company’s headquarters, (Glass House), 3, Otto Road, Ijora-Olopa, Lagos.
…Says Attitudinal Change A Major Challenge
The Lagos State Waste Management Authority, LAWMA has formed a synergy with the Nigeria Police Force and the Lagos State Neighborhood Safety Corps Watch, to arrest Cart Pushers who dump waste on the streets and roads in the State.
The Authority also reiterated it determination to make the State Cleaner and healthier for all, and become the biggest recycling State in West Africa.
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of LAWMA, Ibrahim Adejuwon Odumboni at a Press Briefing said that the Authority is not resting on its oars in addressing the issue of waste retrieval and the indiscriminate dumping of refuse at the median of major roads in the State.
He said these Cart Pushers after retrieving waste from some Lagosians who do not patronize the Private Sector Participation, PSPs, who are Clients of LAWMA, dump it on the Median road at night.
“In addressing this anomalies we have a good relationship with the Police and LNSC who arrest the cart pushers and they are charged to Court.
Odumboni the LAWMA boss said: “We want all Lagosians to have a sense of belonging and not disenfranchise anyone that is why the Lagos State Government has subsidized the price of Diesel so that we won’t over charge Lagosians”.
He promise to go to the interiors and hinterlands using available means of transportation. “For areas that are not motorable and are in the hinterlands, we are partnering with some Companies to get us Tricycles that we can use to get to the unmotorable areas and hinterlands to evacuate their refuse”.
The Lagos State Waste Management Authority, LAWMA, also lamented that the attitudinal behaviour of Lagosians towards refuse disposal isn’t encouraging, urging Lagosians to partner with the Commissioner of having a cleaner Lagos.
“Waste Management is recurrent and it is a collective responsibility to all irrespective of tribe, religion, political affiliation. He said there is need for attitudinal change in waste management, as every Lagosians have a role to play”. He therefore urged Lagosians to stop patronizing Cart Pushers but signed up with the PSPs for their refuse disposals.
The Authority also reiterated it determination to make the State Cleaner and healthier for all, and become the biggest recycling State in West Africa.
Further, Odumboni lamented that the hike in the prices of diesel from N278 per litre in January to about N875, representing 300 per cent increment which is really having a toll on the Authority stressing that the rising cost of operations has prompted the Governor Babajide Olusola Sanwo Olu administration to subsidize diesel for LAWMA and all its PSP Operators.
However, Odumboni said that the price of Waste tenement will be reviewed and implemented as from September 1st, 2022.
It also stated that as from October 1st, 2022, any House that do not have Waste Bin would be penalized as the Authority is partnering with Health Officers to do effective monitoring all around the State.
LAWMA said that by January 1st, 2023, if every household do not have the Waste Bin after been warned, the abatement letter will automatically turn to a prosecution letter.
He appealed to all Lagosians to comply because it is mandatory and compulsory for all Lagosians to have the Waste Bin.
He then added that as regards rehabilitation of Landfills, the Olusosun, Badagry, Ikorodu and Epe Landfills are working perfectly well now and have capacity to tip 120 in an hour.
He said that LAWMA is working on making Olusosun Dumpsite become a Waste to Energy for the economic development for the State, just like the LAWMA Medical Waste Management in Ibeju Lekki and Odogunyan.
Also, the President of Association of Waste Managers of Nigeria (AWAMN), Mr. David Oriyomi, said the price of diesel negatively affected their operation.
He thanked the governor for the subsidy offered to PSP operators, adding that service charges needed to be reviewed to reflect current economic realities.
