Dare Babalola
Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, has described the restriction of movement imposed on Lagos residents during the monthly environmental sanitation exercise as unlawful and a violation of fundamental rights.
In a statement issued on Saturday, Adegboruwa criticised the Lagos State Government over what he called the forceful enforcement of a policy that compelled residents to remain indoors, allegedly under the supervision of law enforcement agencies and other state operatives.
He argued that no valid law currently supports the restriction of movement for sanitation purposes in the state, challenging the government to produce any such legal instrument.
“The government claims to rely on a particular health law of 2017, which it has refused to publish or make available to the public for confirmation and scrutiny. For the avoidance of any doubt whatsoever, there is currently no law in force in Lagos State which permits the government to restrict movement of persons for the purpose of enforcing monthly environmental sanitation,” he stated.
Adegboruwa further faulted the enforcement method, alleging that security agencies and other state-backed operatives were used to intimidate citizens.
“The directive upon citizens to stay indoors on the last Saturday of every month is plainly illegal and unconstitutional and no resident of Lagos State should suffer any penalty or disability for ignoring such illegal policy,” he added.
He also criticised the policy itself, arguing that governance challenges such as waste management, environmental degradation, and poor public infrastructure should not be addressed through coercive restrictions on movement.
According to him, development and environmental cleanliness should be achieved through effective governance rather than what he described as outdated and repressive practices.
“The greatest dirt upon human existence is blind corruption and poor leadership which subjects citizens to mass hunger, untold suffering… and imposes bogus taxes without corresponding development,” he said.
Adegboruwa maintained that modern cities should adopt globally accepted environmental practices rather than resorting to restrictions reminiscent of outdated administrative systems.
He urged authorities to focus on policy reforms that respect citizens’ rights while ensuring environmental hygiene without coercion.
