Lagos To Reward Clean Communities, Sets Up Assessment Committee

Lagos State Government on Sunday announced the resuscitation of the Environmental Sanitation competition amongst all Local Governments and Local Council Development Areas in the State. A statement signed by the Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Mr. Tunji Bello, said the competition is being brought back to reawaken the consciousness of every resident within Local Governments and serve as the pivot of the campaign.

He explained that since the programme suffered a setback in 2017 through a court stoppage of the monthly environmental sanitation exercise, everyone has let down their guard thus aggravating various environmental issues.

While maintaining that part of the benefits derivable from the resuscitation is bringing about a healthy competition on sanitation and hygiene practices amongst communities, markets and LGs/LCDAs, the Commissioner averred that other inherent benefits include improvement in the environmental conditions of the State, especially on highways, roads and streets, markets, schools and curbing street trading.

Bello said the competition will take input of major actors, such as local government Chairmen, community leaders, traditional rulers, transport unions and market leaders in the communities.

He informed that an assessment committee, which will start work in May, has been constituted with membership drawn from the Environment Ministry, Local Government and Community Affairs and other relevant MDAs to inspect all public utilities. The assessment committee will also inspect the general aesthetics of the scheduled LGs/LCDAs and the commitment of each to environmental management. The Commissioner listed some of the criteria for the assessment of each LG/LCDA to include culture of bagging of refuse, clean and flowing drains, LAWMA/PSP patronage and vegetal control.

Others are market cleanliness, landscaping and beautification of LG/LCDA Secretariats, control of illegal structures, shanties, black spots, illegal refuse dumps, encroachment on drainage setbacks, street trading, abandoned buildings, land and property.

The assessment is scheduled to round off in November with an award ceremony during which mouthwatering prizes will be presented to the winner and first runners-up LG/LCDA.

Consolation prizes will also be given to the cleanest market, school, environmental sanitation and hygienic motor park/garage amongst others.