The Lagos State Government has approved 24 Magistrate Courts to prosecute environmental defaulters.
President, Association of Waste Managers of Nigeria (AWAMN), Mr David Oriyomi, disclosed this on Thursday in Lagos.
Oriyomi said the Chief Judge of Lagos State, Justice Kazeem Alogba, gave the approval in a letter sent to the association.
Some of the courts include Court 4; Court 10, Igbosere, Court 4, Tinubu all in Lagos Magisterial District.
Also, in Ikeja Magisterial District are Court 9, Court 18, Court 20 in Ogba and Court 2 in Ogudu, among others.
The approval also included six Mobile Courts, where offenders would be tried on the go.
He said the approval was given in the month of May, adding that the association had been visiting the courts to ensure the judges’ collaboration on the directive.
According to him, the waste managers are ready to act on what has been approved and implement the existing environmental laws.
He said that approval of the courts to try environmental offenders would support not only the association but would improve the aesthetics of Lagos State.
The president urged residents to patronise the waste managers and pay for services rendered, so as to ensure a cleaner Lagos.
He said the welfare of the members of the association was interwoven with the cleanliness of the state.
According to him, if the operator is well funded with his equipment and is delivering the services, the entire state will be clean, but once the operator is not effective, it will impact negatively on the environment.
“With the approval of these courts for environmental offences, defaulters will be forced to conform to the requirements of cleanliness.
“Once you pay for the services rendered, the operators will be more efficient in delivering the services.
“The operator will be able to service the loan that he acquired from the bank to purchase trucks that he used in servicing his clients.
“We are happy that the Chief Judge approved the courts and by that token, he has enhanced the cleanliness of the state.
“Most of these diseases come through the dirty environment, so it behoves on us to keep our environment clean, so as to have healthy citizens and healthy economy.”
The Spokesperson of AWAMN, Mr Olugbenga Adebola, said it was now an offence not to patronise the PSP operators or refuse to pay for services rendered.
Adebola said it was compulsory now to patronise and pay the waste managers because since the law had been made, it had put in the care of all assigned PSP operators to collect all the waste generated in Lagos State.
“We are all Lagosians and the government is not interested in even prosecuting anybody. The government wants residents to comply with every environmental law.
“Just as the Bible said, Our Lord is not interested in the death of a sinner, but He wants every sinner to repent and make heaven.”
