The Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) says the authority is proposing a 50 percent increase in waste bill across board for Lagos residents. Managing Director of LAWMA, Mr. Ibrahim Odumboni stated this during a media briefing on Wednesday, August 10, 2022 in Lagos.
Odumboni said that the price increase was due to the high cost of operation by the Private Sector Participants (PSP) operators.
According to him, the cost of Diesel used by PSP operators increased from N278 per litre in January to about N875, representing 300 per cent increment.
”We are in the process of having an extensive pricing review for PSP services offered to the households knowing fully well the economic reality.
”Also we are not introducing any change that will turn away consumers of our product.
”While the high cost is about 300 per cent, we are proposing 50 per cent increase across board,” Odumboni said.
The CEO said that the governor was also providing additional subsidies for fuel other than the existing subsidies given to PSPs to share.
It was revealed that, 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 its determination to make the State Cleaner and healthier for all, and become the biggest recycling State in West Africa.
“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.
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 attitutoinal 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 its determination to make the State Cleaner and healthier for all, and become the biggest recycling State in West Africa.
More importantly, 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.
He noted that the state was generating 13,000 metric tonnes of wastes daily, adding that the trucks were being run with diesel 100 per cent.
He appealed to Lagos residents to patronise PSP operators instead of the illegal cart pushers who dumped refuse indiscriminately on the roads
Odumboni said that the authority was considering the use of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) to power PSP trucks to address the problem of high energy cost.
The LAWMA helmsman also warned that the authority would prosecute any household that did not have a bin from October 1
”If you don’t have a bin from October 1, you may be prosecuted,” Odumboni said.
He said that it was wrong for a compound of several houses to have just one waste bin.
According to him, sanitary officers will go round from house to house to advocate on the importance of adopting a bin and sorting of wastes.
He said that the agency was working on the creation of Transfer Loading Stations (TLS) in all the local government areas of the state, for fast and smooth evacuation of waste around the metropolis.
The managing director hinted of imminent establishment of a ‘bottle-to-bottle’ recycling centre in Lagos.
He said that the project was initiated in partnership with a private company who would source their raw materials from the plastic waste generated across the Lagos metropolis.
According to him, Lagos will soon become the hub of recycling in West Africa.
Odumboni said that the authority planned to set up 30 recycling centres across the state by the end of the year.He said the centres were expected to boost the Lagos recycling initiative, which apart from its economic benefits, would mitigate the challenge of plastic pollution.
Also, the President of Association of Waste Managers of Nigeria (AWAMN), Mr. David Oriyomi, said the price of diesel negatively affected their operation.
To cap it all, he thanked the governor for the subsidy offered to PSP operators, adding that service charges needed to be reviewed to reflect current economic realities.
