The Lagos International Trade Fair Board of Trustees has slammed the Lagos Waste Management Authority, LAWMA, for allegedly causing it to lose over N2 billion by locking the complex’s gate.
The market’s BoT insisted on a “sudden and unjust closure” by the Lagos Waste agency.
Fielding questions from newsmen on the closure, former Chairman of the Trade Fair and Board of Trustees, BOT, and Chairman of ASPAMDA Chief Daniel Oforkansi said, “I don’t understand if LAWMA does not see us as humans. No information or letter was written to us to that effect; they just came to lock our shops.
“We are not owing them; we have receipts and evidence to prove it. And when you talk of markets in Nigeria and across Africa, the Lagos International Trade Fair is the pride of Africa. So you cannot quantify the amount that has been lost for just a day. The N2 billion cash transaction is too small to quantify the loss for today alone. So I don’t know what LAWMA is thinking about, but I know that in due time, the law will take its course.”
Also speaking, the Trade Fair Stakeholders Forum, the umbrella body for the 62 associations in the Complex, Chief Eric Ilechukwu, said, “I didn’t expect such an unwarranted move to be made by LAWMA at a critical time as this when people are still wailing over fuel subsidy removal by this administration.
“We are already wounded, and many of our people are seeing it as unjust victimization of Igbos by the Lagos government.”
Efforts to reach the LAWMA’s Director of Head of Public Affairs, Mrs.Folashade Kadiri proved abortive as she was not responding to calls, text messages, or WhatsApp messages from our correspondent.
Meanwhile, Director of Public Affairs, the Ministry of Environment and Water Resources, Kunle Adeshina, who confirmed the enforcement on his X handle (formerly Twitter) said the agencies carried out the directive given by the Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab.
”Following the directives of Honorable Commissioner, Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, HC MOE&WR, LAWMA Sunday 22nd October 2023, shut ASPAMDA, BBA and other markets within the Lagos International Trade Fair Complex.
“The enforcement was carried out by officials of Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) in partnership with Lagos Task Force on Environmental Sanitation and Special Offenses and Lagos Environmental Sanitation Corps (LAGESC) for poor waste disposal practices, non-payment for waste disposal and general environmental sanitation infractions.”