The Lagos State Government is set to deploy an additional 220 trucks to strengthen waste evacuation across the state, Deputy Governor Obafemi Hamzat has said.
Hamzat disclosed this on Saturday during the monthly environmental sanitation exercise in Festac, Amuwo-Odofin Local Government Area.
According to him, the additional trucks will complement the existing Private Sector Participation waste collection system and improve the government’s capacity to cope with the increasing volume of refuse generated daily.
He said the rise in Lagos’ population had contributed significantly to the volume of waste produced across the state, making improved evacuation capacity necessary.
“The state government will be bringing in another 220 trucks to make sure that we supplement our PSP,” Hamzat said.
He urged residents to patronise approved PSP operators rather than cart pushers, warning that indiscriminate disposal of refuse could worsen environmental problems.
“You don’t know where the waste is ending up,” he added.
The deputy governor also appealed to residents to avoid dumping refuse in canals and other drainage channels, noting that blocked waterways could restrict the flow of water and increase the risk of flooding.
Hamzat said the state government was encouraging communities to organise regular sanitation activities and take greater responsibility for maintaining clean surroundings.
“We cannot be a people without a healthy environment. It doesn’t matter what we do, a cleaner environment is what makes a city or a state sustainable,” he said.
He added that residents’ cooperation was essential to achieving a cleaner and healthier Lagos, particularly for children and other vulnerable members of society.
Also speaking, the Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, said the state had intensified efforts to improve waste management through emergency response operations and interventions at landfills and dumpsites.
Wahab said the government was also working more closely with PSP operators to improve waste collection, while encouraging residents to pay for the services they receive under the polluter-pays principle.
He explained that the state was gradually moving away from the conventional system of collecting and dumping waste towards a circular model in which waste is recovered and transformed into useful resources.
According to him, material recovery facilities have been developed in Badagry and Epe, while transfer stations have also been established at Soluyi and Olusosun as part of the transition.
On the activities of cart pushers, Wahab said the government was engaging with them but would not implement policies that could create additional environmental or security concerns.
He alleged that some cart pushers had been found dumping collected refuse in drainage channels and road medians, thereby contributing to flooding and other environmental challenges.
Wahab also raised concerns over alleged links between some cart pushers and criminal activities, including the theft of metals.
He said the government’s approach would have to balance waste management needs with the need to protect residents and maintain security across the state.
