The Ogun State Government has ruled out any plan to bring back the monthly environmental sanitation exercise, opting instead to expand daily waste collection and disposal operations across the state.
The government said it would strengthen the Ogun State Waste Management Authority (OGWAMA) with additional compactors, operational vehicles and other waste management equipment to improve the cleanliness, safety and health of communities.
Governor Dapo Abiodun disclosed the position while commissioning waste management equipment, operational vehicles and an office block in Abeokuta.
The event marked the first six months in office of OGWAMA’s Special Adviser and Managing Director, Farouk Akintunde.
Abiodun, who was represented at the event by the Commissioner for Environment, Dr Ola Oresanya, said the state had moved away from the practice of shutting down economic and social activities for several hours every month under the old environmental sanitation regime.
According to the governor, the administration has spent the past six years promoting daily environmental sanitation across Ogun, making the designation of a particular day every month unnecessary.
“Already our people are used to daily sanitation, so instead of reintroducing monthly Environmental Exercise, we have decided to buy more Compactors and other waste management equipment for the State Waste Management Authority OGWAMA to daily collect and properly dispose of waste generated by households, commercial outlets and industrial facilities in conjunction with accredited PSPs across the state,” the statement quoted Abiodun as saying.
He said the additional equipment would increase OGWAMA’s operational capacity while addressing some of the shortcomings associated with the former monthly sanitation arrangement.
Abiodun said the state government would soon receive the new compactors and other waste management equipment, adding that the investment was part of efforts to ensure effective collection and disposal of waste across Ogun.
He also criticised the shortcomings of the former system, particularly situations where waste remained uncollected or improperly disposed of even after the monthly sanitation exercise had ended.
“In fact, the state government will soon take delivery of these Compactors and other waste equipment to further strengthen OGWAMA, thereby affirming the state government’s determination of not going back to the old ways when Environmental Sanitation Exercises are done once in a month, with its problems of ineffective collection and disposal even hours after the end of the exercise,” he added.
The governor commended residents for their cooperation with the government’s environmental initiatives, specifically acknowledging Community Development Associations (CDAs), owners of commercial outlets and captains of industry.
He further assured residents that his administration would continue to provide the Ministry of Environment and its sister agencies with the resources required to improve environmental services.
Among the agencies mentioned were the Ogun State Environmental Protection Agency (OGEPA) and OGWAMA, which the governor said would continue to receive support and equipment to enhance service delivery throughout the state.
Abiodun also praised Akintunde for his performance during his first six months as head of OGWAMA, describing his achievements as significant despite operating with limited resources.
The governor expressed confidence that the arrival of more compactors and other waste management equipment would enable the OGWAMA management to further transform the authority and improve its operations across Ogun State.
