Dare Babalola
The Ogun State government has sealed five Chinese companies operating in the Ogere Axis of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway. The companies were sealed for assaulting and inflicting bodily harm on law enforcement officers and state government officials.
The sealed companies are DL Plastics Limited, Dyschenghan Plastics, SH Agricultural Limited, Beautiful Fibre Limited, and Jincaicai Nigeria Limited.
According to the Special Adviser to the Governor on Environment and Managing Director of the Ogun State Waste Management Authority (OGWAMA), Hon. Abayomi Hunye, the companies were sealed for environmental infractions.
The environmental infractions include improper waste disposal and refusal to patronise government-recognised waste collectors. Despite several invitations and official letters, the companies refused to comply with environmental regulations.
Hunye stated that OGWAMA had been on the case for six months, sending letters and inviting the companies to address the environmental infractions. However, the companies refused to honor the invitations.
He said, “We have been on this case for the past six months. We have sent letters to them and invited them to let them know what they have done, but they refused to honor our invitation. Aside from these letters, our officials have visited them severally but they refused to allow them in.
“After all these efforts proved abortive, we pasted notices of intention to seal them on their premises especially on their main and entrance gates in the past three months hoping that this would trigger them to honor our invitation. They still refused to come forward, so last Thursday our officials sealed them by locking their entrance gates. But to our surprise, they not only removed the government seal-order, but they broke the government chains used to lock them.
“To enforce the earlier seal-up order, state officials in the company of law enforcement officers went to their industries hours ago. However, they were met with a mob attack by their workers who assaulted and inflicted bodily harm on law enforcement officers and state government officials, who were all rushed to the hospital thereby not only preventing them from carrying out their lawful duties but also with the intent of harming them”
He stated that the officials were rushed to the hospital, adding that the government vowed to prosecute those responsible for the attack.
“The government will ensure that those who flout environmental regulations and assault officials face the consequences of their actions. The companies’ actions have constituted themselves as an environmental nuisance, and their behavior is unacceptable,” he declared.
