Lagos residents’ worried on ability of Ambode’s Visionscape to clean Lagos
There are serious discuss around the streets, highways and mainly residential axis of Lagos on whether the new entrant, VisionScape can keep Lagos State cleaner than the rested Private Sector Participation (PSP) who are now pushed to take care of commercial and industrial wastes.
Business Hilights gathered that VisionScape was selected to dislodge LAWMA’a PSP operators based on the feats the company had achieved in keeping Dubai clean.
By the new arrangement driven by Clean Lagos Initiative (CLI), whereas VisionScape is in charge of wastes generated by households and along the streets, PSP operators and their rickety trunks are now handling commericial and industrial wastes.
However, it was not clear if the government was aware that the kinds of what constitute wastes in Dubai may be clearly different to those of Lagos both in quantity, time of generation, mental alertness of generators and the cost of resetting the mindset of Lagos residents before the deal can become successful after all.
Though several streets are yet to be covered, areas already covered are battling with over-filled customized bids due to lapses in schedules of removal.
Investigations show that four out of every five VisionScape waste bin positioned along several roads and streets are always over-filled days before compactors come for them, thus causing the compactor workers the extra pain of packing overflows.
But there seems to be light at the end of the tunnel as the Association of Waste Managers of Nigeria, Lagos Chapter, (AWMN), has called on the Lagos State Governor, Akinwumi Ambode, to create a collaborative arrangement to make the Private Sector Participant (PSP) and the Visionscape Company work together to clean up Lagos.
The Association at a press briefing last week, in Lagos reiterated that distribution bins across the streets and highways of Lagos State without adequate provision for evacuation has increased the number of black spots experienced in the state.
In his speech, the Chairman of AWMN, Lagos Chapter, Oladipo Egbeyemi, noted that the various interventions carried out to date have not stopped the increase in the volume of waste on the highways and medians. He decried government’s accusations of blackmail and sabotage saying that allegations are unfounded.
He said government has already confirmed that the PSP has almost 1,000 trucks following a verification exercise carried out by its consultant with over 400 licensed operators. He noted that a two days waste backlog has closed the Olusosun dump site and made it inaccessible thereby adversely affecting the turnaround.
AWMN averred that the waste problems must be tackled at the point of generation by enforcing the government policy of door to door collection acknowledged to be the international best practice.
“There is need to ensure that all existing dump sites are made accessible at all times; delivering massive advocacy programmes to enlightening Lagosians.
“Enforcement of sanitation practice of bagging and contenarisation of wastes and providing sustainable enforcement for non-compliance to house to house disposal and non- payment. It demands that all stakeholders should remain committed to the Rule of Law and avoid any measure that will create divisions and anarchy.
