Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has issued a 72-hour ultimatum to occupants of illegal shanties and makeshift structures built along the median of the Lagos-Badagry Expressway, warning that a large-scale demolition exercise will begin next week as part of efforts to restore order and protect public infrastructure. The directive was announced on Saturday after the governor and his wife, Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, led the monthly environmental sanitation exercise across communities in Surulere Local Government Area.
Addressing journalists after participating in the sanitation exercise, Sanwo-Olu said enforcement teams would move into the Lagos-Badagry corridor from next week to remove every illegal structure occupying the highway median. The governor explained that the operation would cover the stretch from Orile-Iganmu to Okokomaiko, stressing that the area was never intended for markets, settlements or commercial structures.
“This is the final notice to everyone occupying the median of the Lagos-Badagry Expressway. From next week, we are coming to clear the entire median. Everything there will go. Every illegal structure will be removed.” Sanwo-Olu said the corridor represents a major public investment that must be protected.
“It is not meant to be a market. It is not meant to be a place where people erect structures. It is a highway median, and we must preserve it, especially considering the huge public investment on that corridor.” He noted that the 10-lane expressway was built with taxpayers’ money and described it as an important international gateway into Lagos.
“It’s a 10-lane highway that was built with the resources of our taxpayers. I will not fold my arms and allow them to turn that international gateway into a slum. This is a notice that I am giving officially to everybody on that corridor. We are starting next week, and we are going to deploy thousands of men there.”
Speaking on environmental sanitation, the governor disclosed that the state government would soon strengthen waste collection by adding 150 compactors to its operational fleet. He also announced plans to deploy waste collection tricycles to inner communities to improve refuse evacuation in densely populated areas.
Sanwo-Olu further revealed that Lagos is investing in long-term waste management infrastructure, including a modern material recovery and recycling facility expected to process about 4,250 metric tonnes of waste daily. He appealed to residents to support government efforts by disposing of waste responsibly and paying their waste collection bills promptly.
“Waste management is not the responsibility of government alone. It is a collective responsibility.”
He added that regular payment for waste collection services would enable Private Sector Participation operators to continue delivering efficient services across the state. The governor also encouraged parents to involve their children in sanitation exercises, saying environmental responsibility should be cultivated from an early age to build a cleaner and healthier Lagos.
During an inspection of the Olusosun Landfill after the sanitation exercise, Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, said Lagos was moving away from the traditional waste collection and dumping system. According to him, the state has commenced work on a material recovery facility designed to convert waste into valuable products instead of simply disposing of it.
Wahab explained that the Olusosun facility would serve as one of the transfer loading stations, moving approximately 2,500 metric tonnes of waste daily to the recycling facility under construction in Ikorodu. He expressed optimism that the project would begin operations before the end of the year.
“We can’t sustain the linear waste management system that we have practised for over four decades, which simply means we have been used to collect and dump. Collect and dump cannot be sustainable.” The commissioner urged residents to support the ongoing reforms, noting that Lagos aims to transform waste into resources capable of generating wealth, energy and other economic benefits while improving environmental sustainability.
