Lagos state governor Sanwo-Olu reintroduces monthly sanitation from April, urging residents to take collective responsibility for keeping Lagos clean.
The Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has formally approved the reintroduction of the monthly environmental sanitation exercise, which he said will kick off in April.
The reintroduced sanitation will take place on the last Saturday of each month from 6.30 a.m. to 8.30 a.m.
The governor said this on Saturday at a stakeholders’ engagement on environmental sanitation.
He said the initiative was not a political contest, but a serious public health and civic responsibility exercise aimed at building a cleaner, healthier Lagos.
Sanwo-Olu lamented that despite all efforts by the government to sanitise Mushin, it has remained very dirty.
He said the reintroduced sanitation exercise was designed to reach all parts of the state and deepen environmental consciousness among residents.
The governor added that the government alone could not achieve a clean city without active public participation.
“This morning’s exercise is a very serious one and a defining moment for all of us as Lagosians.
“It is not about politics, it is not about rivalry; it is about our collective responsibility to keep our environment clean, healthy, and safe for everyone,” he said.
Sanwo-Olu said the cleanliness of streets, markets, drainage channels, and public spaces reflected residents’ daily habits.
He noted that sustainable environmental management must be driven by shared responsibility, not by enforcement alone.
“A clean city is not achieved by the government alone. It is built every day by the actions of citizens, by what we do in our homes, in our markets, in our communities, and on our streets,” he said.
Monthly environmental sanitation in Lagos was officially suspended in November 2016, following a March 2015 Federal High Court ruling.
The court held that the restriction on human movement from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. was unconstitutional, violating citizens’ right to freedom of movement.
Eventually, former Governor Akinwunmi Ambode formally announced the cancellation of the monthly, mandatory cleanup exercise in November 2016.
Sanwo-Olu recalled that the monthly environmental sanitation was once a national civic culture observed on the last Saturday of every month, when residents voluntarily cleaned their surroundings as part of a broader commitment to public health.
“Although a court judgment ended the movement restriction that characterised the old sanitation exercise, the responsibility of government and citizens to maintain a clean environment remained unchanged.
“We respect the rule of law and the authority of the courts. The enforcement mechanism may have changed, but the responsibility to maintain a clean and healthy environment has not changed and will never change,” he said.