Resurgence of waste in Lagos to end soon —Ambode

GOVERNOR Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State on Saturday allayed the fears of residents over the resurgence of waste on major highways and streets, assuring that his administration was on top of the situation and working round the clock to make it a thing of the past.

Governor Ambode gave this assurance at the Lagos House in Alausa, Ikeja after inaugurating the new Board of the Lagos State Environmental Sanitation Corps (LAGESC) now to be headed by a retired Assistant Commissioner of Police as Corps Marshal, Daniel Isiofia,

According to Ambode, the new waste management policy of government encapsulated in the Cleaner Lagos Initiative (CLI) was designed to holistically address the challenges in the sector, saying all hands were already on deck to confront the initial hitches within the transition period.

The governor said adequate officials of LAGESC, transformed from the former Kick Against Indiscipline (KAI), had been employed to police all nooks and crannies of the state to curb indiscriminate dumping of waste and other acts inimical to clean, hygienic and sustainable environment.

Ambode, who was represented at the inauguration by his Special Adviser on Education, Mr Obafela Bank-Olemoh, said concerted efforts were ongoing to clear the heaps of refuse across the metropolis, and assured that there would be marked improvement in coming days.

“We are all living witnesses to the restructuring we are trying to do in the environmental sector. That restructuring culminated in the introduction of CLI which is focused at ensuring that the way we clean Lagos is comparable to what is being done in first class cities in the world.

“As a result, we are changing the way environment in Lagos is being managed and to help us to achieve that, this Sanitation Corp is important. But more importantly now is to speak to the fact that yes, we are having some challenges in the area of waste management in Lagos today. We all live in Lagos but I want to reaffirm that we are doing everything to ensure that this becomes a thing of the past,” the governor said.

“Another key aspect of the initiative is that it will create jobs. As we speak to you, we have employed over 8,500 new street sweepers that are being deployed across the state and the target is 27,500. So, every part of Lagos will have street sweepers that are unique to them and live in their neighborhood.

Also speaking, Commissioner for Health, Dr Jide Idris said the need for the new environmental initiative became imperative owing to the fact that there was need for a review of the old system to tackle emerging challenges.

Idris, who said there was correlation between environment and health, particularly urged LAGESC to efficiently and effectively perform its duty, just as he underscored the need for the people to support government.

Isiofia, in his remark, thanked Governor Ambode for the opportunity to serve the people, assuring that his men would hit the ground running in line with the mandate to keep the state clean.

He said though the starting point might be difficult but assured that every efforts would be made to change the face of Lagos for good.