Lagos Transport Unions Pledge Full Support for Reintroduced Monthly Sanitation Exercise
In a significant development for environmental management in Nigeria's commercial capital, leaders of major transport unions in Lagos State have formally pledged their unwavering commitment to the recently reintroduced monthly environmental sanitation exercise. This commitment includes a concrete agreement that no commercial vehicles will operate from parks and garages between 6:30am and 8:30am on the last Saturday of every month.
Union Leaders Make Firm Commitments
The strategic meeting, presided over by Lagos State Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, and his Transportation counterpart, Mr. Oluwaseun Osiyemi, saw transport union representatives make binding declarations. The National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), represented by State Secretary Usman Teslim, gave what he described as "total commitment" to ensuring the success of the sanitation initiative.
Teslim emphasized that all transporters within the union would dedicate the 6:30am to 8:30am time slot exclusively to cleaning their homes and immediate surroundings before resuming commercial activities. He further announced that NURTW would establish task forces within its various units to enforce compliance with this decision across all operational areas.
Legal and Cultural Foundations
According to Teslim, the union's commitment aligns with existing regulations governing NURTW operations, which mandate support for government policy pronouncements in any state or local government where the union operates. He also highlighted that the culture of placing waste bins in public buses "remains in existence," noting that this practice helps commuters dispose of waste appropriately during regular operations.
Echoing this resolve, the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) Lagos chapter, represented by Deputy State Secretary Kaojue Abolaji on behalf of Chairman Shamsudeen Ajala, made similar commitments. RTEAN pledged to communicate with all its affiliate unions and branches to ensure that every last Saturday of the month, their vehicles would only begin passenger operations after 8:30am.
Government Rationale and Broader Context
Commissioner Tokunbo Wahab explained the imperative for this strategic meeting, reiterating that the administration of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu "stands at the forefront of efforts to achieve a cleaner, flood-free, and sustainable environment." He emphasized that collaboration with stakeholders represents a crucial component of this environmental vision.
Wahab highlighted that a substantial portion of Lagos's population relies on public transportation—both road and water—for daily mobility, with the informal sector accounting for over 70 percent of transportation operators. This demographic reality makes their buy-in essential for the initiative's success. "If we all agree with government that we want the state to be cleaner and want this initiative to succeed, then we must all cooperate to ensure its success," Wahab stated emphatically.
Existing Initiatives and Regional Coordination
The commissioner noted that a similar sanitation initiative already operates every Thursday between 7:00am and 10:00am in markets across Lagos, where traders participate in cleaning their market spaces. He suggested that this successful model "should be replicated in our homes" through the monthly transport sector initiative.
Wahab charged union leadership to communicate their resolution to counterparts in neighboring states to foster regional compliance and cooperation. Transportation Commissioner Oluwaseun Osiyemi sought the support of informal sector transporters while urging formal sector operators to ensure the monthly sanitation exercise succeeds through active participation.
This comprehensive agreement represents a significant step in Lagos State's ongoing efforts to enhance environmental cleanliness through structured, collaborative approaches involving key transportation stakeholders.
