LAWMA: Mushin Clean, Ignore Old Waste Videos
The Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) has asked residents to disregard old videos and photographs circulating on social media showing heaps of refuse in Mushin, insisting that the area is currently clean following a three-week intensive waste collection intervention.
The Authority said the images being presented as recent were outdated and could create a false impression of the current waste situation in the densely populated Lagos community.
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of LAWMA, Dr Muyiwa Gbadegesin, made the clarification in a statement issued by the Authority’s Director of Public Affairs, Dr Mukaila Sanusi.
Gbadegesin said LAWMA had intensified its intervention in Mushin after service delays were recorded in some parts of the area, deploying its trucks directly into inner streets to evacuate waste from households and communities.
He said the Authority had also engaged market and community leaders to improve coordination and ensure that identified gaps in waste collection were promptly addressed.
“Some of the videos being circulated as though they show the current situation in Mushin are old, and presenting them without dates or context is misleading,” Gbadegesin said.
“We acknowledge that there have been service delays in some areas, but LAWMA has stepped in, and the situation on the ground today is different.”
The intervention, according to residents, has begun to make a noticeable difference.
Mrs Taiwo Adenekan, a resident of Dakobiri Street, Mushin, said the arrival of LAWMA trucks in the area had eased the challenge of disposing of household and market waste.
“We have seen LAWMA trucks coming into the market and taking away the waste,” she said, adding that the direct collection had made disposal easier and reduced the temptation to dump refuse at unauthorised locations.
At Irepodun Market, the Babaloja, Chief Samsideen Obawunmi, said LAWMA’s engagement with market stakeholders had helped draw attention to waste management challenges in the community.
He said traders were also being encouraged to take greater responsibility for proper waste disposal.
The General Secretary of Mushin Market, Alhaji Kazeem, similarly commended LAWMA for responding to complaints from residents and community representatives, saying the direct collection from inner streets had provided a more convenient option for households.
Another resident, Owolabi Akinwande of Moroduke, Mushin, welcomed the intervention, urging residents to use community channels to alert LAWMA whenever there were delays in waste collection.
While acknowledging that service gaps could occur, LAWMA maintained that residents must not resort to dumping refuse on road medians or other unauthorised locations.
Gbadegesin urged communities experiencing delays to contact the Authority through their Community Development Associations (CDAs) or community leaders for interim direct collection.
LAWMA reiterated its zero tolerance for indiscriminate dumping, stressing that residents should properly package their waste and dispose of it through approved collection channels.
The Authority said it would continue to intervene where necessary while working with Private Sector Participation (PSP) operators, market leaders, CDAs and other stakeholders to strengthen waste collection in Mushin and other affected areas.
LAWMA also urged residents to distinguish between outdated social media content and the current situation on the ground, report genuine service delays through the appropriate channels and support efforts to keep Lagos clean.
