Lagos Residents Want LAWMA’s Dumpsite Relocated

In this photo taken Friday, Jan, 24. 2014, scavengers in Lagos, Nigeria sort out iron and plastic to sell at the Olusosun dump site the city's largest dump. With a population of more than 20 million, garbage piles up on streets, outside homes and along the waterways and lagoons, creating eyesores and putrid smells. The booming city also has major electricity shortages and many residents rely on diesel generators that cloud the air with black exhaust. Nigeria's most populous city is turning these problems into an advantage by starting a program to convert waste into methane gas to generate electricity. A pilot program at a local market has already shown success on a smaller scale. Lagos’ waste management program is also organizing recycling to clean up the country's biggest city. (AP Photo/ Sunday Alamba)

The residents of Apapa road in Lagos Mainland Local Government Area of Lagos State have appealed to the state government and management of the Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) to relocated the Transfer Loading Station (TLS) situated in the area.
The residents made this known at the weekend during a protest and picketing of the facility, which is located between Thomas, Odaliki, Ibadan and Niger Streets.

The residents said since LAWMA started dumping refuse in the facility, they have been witnessing series of pollution and strange disease in the area.

They also said their roads, electricity poles, drainage systems among other amenities have been badly damaged and destroyed, while vehicular movement have also been hampered due to reckless packing of the trucks.

Pasted at the entrance to the dumpsite are placards with inscriptions such as: “Save our souls LAWMA”, “Killing us instalmentally is wicked” and “Refuse dumpsite in a residential community is man inhumanity to man, enough is enough”.

Prior to the protest, the residents said they have made their plights known to the Senior Special Adviser on Cleaner Lagos Initiative and LAWMA, Rasheed Shabi, through a petition, but nothing has been done.

Speaking on the protest, a resident of the area, Mr. Oluseun Williams, said the protest became inevitable due to the nonchalance of the government.

Williams, who gave historical background on how the dumpsite was sited by the administration of Ndubuisi Kanu in the state and how residents vigorously engaged the administration in ensuring that it was not used as dumpsite, said the protest was to ensure that dumping of refuse in the facility is stopped.

Guardian (NG)

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