Dr Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, the First Lady of Lagos, and the state Head of Service, Olabode Agoro, have called on Lagos residents to actively participate in the monthly environmental sanitation exercise to maintain a clean and healthy environment. The exercise, which was suspended a decade ago due to legal challenges, has been reintroduced with symbolic events held in Obalende and Agege.
Symbolic Flag-Off and Monitoring
Dr Sanwo-Olu performed the symbolic flag-off and monitored the exercise at Obalende, expressing satisfaction with the turnout. She described the participation as encouraging and noted that the initiative is gradually gaining acceptance among residents. “It’s a gradual process… people are aware and participating. For a first-timer, I’m impressed,” she said. She emphasized that sanitation should not be limited to the monthly exercise and urged residents to adopt daily cleaning habits to sustain a healthy environment.
HoS Encourages Compliance in Agege
Mr Olabode Agoro spoke during the symbolic sanitation exercise in Agege, where he monitored activities and assessed compliance. He acknowledged that the exercise is still new and requires more public awareness and cooperation to be fully effective. The programme aims to encourage residents to clean their environment, clear gutters, and prevent diseases caused by poor hygiene. During the exercise, movement is typically reduced as people stay back to clean their homes and communities. Agoro noted that compliance was encouraging but stressed the need for more effort. “I believe there is substantial compliance; we need to sensitize people more,” he said.
He also addressed concerns about movement restrictions, clarifying that the government did not stop people from going out. According to him, “People can move; government did not say people should not move, but people actually want to clean their environment, that’s why they are not going out. Even bus drivers want to clean their environment, that’s why they are not moving. We are not restricting people from moving.” He advised residents to make cleanliness a regular habit to stay healthy and avoid infections.
Commissioner Reports High Compliance
The Lagos State Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, revealed that compliance levels exceeded 98 per cent, attributing the success to voluntary participation and grassroots engagement. “People want to keep Lagos clean and safe,” Wahab noted, adding that the government is focused on building community ownership rather than enforcing restrictions.
Local Government Support
The Chairman of Agege Local Government, Abdulganiyu Obasa, said the council has been supporting the sanitation exercise through regular cleaning and drainage maintenance across the area. He emphasized the importance of the initiative for building a cleaner community and assured that the local government will continue to improve enforcement to make future exercises more effective. “Environmental sanitation in the first place is all rounded by enforcement. Anything you want to do has to be enforced, and I am sure for us as a local government, we are making sure we do that. I am sure the state government is putting a lot of things in place to make sure enforcement is carried out on a regular basis, so we will continue to get better. This is the first one; I am sure the second and third ones will be more perfect,” Obasa stated.
