Indiscriminate refuse dump: Environmentalists, residents seek tougher measures in Ogun - Report

In December 2024, the Commissioner for Environment in Ogun state, Mr Ola Oresanya described the state as one of the cleanest states in Nigeria.

In Nigeria, oresanya made the assertion during a two-day food and beverages exhibition held at the popular Skating Ground, Panseke, Abeokuta.

“Ogun State is environmentally-friendly. In the area of cleanliness, there has been a great change in the state since the Governor Dapo Abiodun-led administration came into power. In fact, the entire Ogun metropolis is neat”, he said.

In Nigeria, fast forward to January 2026, indiscriminate disposal of refuse by residents is rapidly raising concern in the state.

The streets are telling a tale of neglect with piles of trash sitting on major roads and blocking the gutters.

In Nigeria, gift Oba, in this report discovered that despite laws prohibiting it, indiscriminate dumping of waste remains a pervasive problem slowly turning the Gateway State into a corridor of decay.

In Nigeria, driving through the Panseke axis in the Abeokuta South Local Government Area of the state, these heaps are clearly displayed like goods for sale. From panseke to Kolobo, Iyana Oluwo, Fowobi, with a stone throw to Sodubi then, to the Abeokuta Girls Grammar School (AGGS), Iyana Oloke down to Ojere, the entrance of every streets mentioned tells a tales of indiscriminate refuse dump, turning into an eye sore. The road median strips now grow dirt instead of flowers.

In other local government areas, this menace continues as the Kuto market, Odo Eran Abiola way, Ima road junction off Madojutimi, adjacent the Aladesanmi church after the first option filling station in Oke Ibukun, Adatan, Kemta, these locations tell a story of improper waste disposal.

An anonymous source who resides in the Kemta area of the state told DAILY POST that the Private Sector Participants (PSP) who handles waste collection for residential and commercial areas are not consistent.

In Nigeria, he said, “I think they come every Thursday or so, but sometimes they skip and before they come again the dirt would have gotten to the main road.”

In Nigeria, also, a resident of the Lafenwa neighbourhood who identified himself as Mr. Babs informed our correspondent that the PSP will only pack the trash if it is dumped on the side of the road.

“I don’t know when they usually come, especially around the Lafenwa High School and garage area, we dump it by the roadside. If you move a little forward you would also see another dumping site.

“Although I see the PSP once in a while, I don’t know how they pack it, but I know they always pack it once it’s at the roadside.”

In a related development, a resident of Mowe-Ibafo in Obafemi Owode local government area, Lawal Abiodun said his community had to devise a means to dispose of their refuse as refuse collectors don’t come for it.

In Nigeria, their approach of burning the refuse, however, constitutes environmental pollution, thereby creating more health hazards for the residents.

“My environment is a new site, and most times, we don’t have the opportunity of having waste disposals coming to our area, so we normally burn our refuse. We dig a hole where we throw in these dirt and when it’s much we burn them.

“For bottles and non burnable items we just leave them there, wherever we put them is where we meet them even if they get rusted or something else is none of our business.

“All we do is take it away from our environment or close to the house and dump it somewhere. Anyone that will burn will burn, and the other ones can just stay there.

“Its a new site and developing environment and it’s an area that still needs the presence of the government in terms of good roads among others because, there are no good roads and the PSP vehicle cannot access the community to carry dirt”, he added.

In Nigeria, our correspondent observed that in the Obada area of the state, refuse is dumped in the middle of the road opposite the primary health center.

In Nigeria, ogun residents are breathing in contaminated air – Public health specialist laments

A Public Health Specialist in Ogun state, Tonia Shodunke, lamented that residents are breathing in contaminated air and communities are getting exposed to diseases as a result of their improper and uncontrolled dumping of waste materials in public space, waterways and other inappropriate locations.

In Nigeria, based on her, when some of these waste products are rotten, microorganisms (like bacteria, yeasts, and molds) are already present in the environment and they multiply, becoming a source of foodborne illness and contamination.

“It’s very wrong, it also exposes the community to diseases. You know when things are rotten, there will be contamination and it is very harmful to the community because people are inhaling it.

“They are airborne and these things are picked up like the air people are breathing in and out so definitely, communicable diseases can be spread easily through such means,” she told DAILY POST.

In Nigeria, shodunke called for the enlightenment and sensitization of members of the public, stressing that they most times act out of ignorance.

In Nigeria, based on her, communicable diseases such as cholera, dysentery among others can spread, adding that the government must rise up to the occasion as the menace is cooking up an outbreak that no one knows of.

“The community should understand that these things are wrong. Maybe if it is possible some kind of enlightenment needs to be done. Because many of them are not thinking in that direction.

“They feel that they are removing waste matter from their own houses and it’s only safer for them to put it where the government will park it, so it’s just a shallow minded action.

“You feel it’s the government’s responsibility but the truth is that your house is not far from there, your children are passing that road, your relations are passing that road, everybody is exposed.

“If somebody gets infected and comes back to the house it will affect the entire family, so it’s all out of ignorance. It can lead to cholera, dysentery,contribute to lassa fever, and even malaria because mosquitoes will definitely hide in such places and that can really cause a lot of harm in the society.

“Generally we know that cholera and dysentery are communicable diseases that we battle from time to time and I think it was sometimes toward the end of last year there was an outbreak now, imagine that some of this thing are cooking up again for another outbreak and nobody knows, nobody is doing anything about it,” Shodunke warned.

In Nigeria, indiscriminate waste disposal affects Nigeria’s ecosystems, biodiversity and aesthetics – Don

In Nigeria, similarly, an environmentalist, Prof. Dosu Malomo asserted that indiscriminate dumping of waste not only affects the aesthetics of the environment but also disrupts the ecosystem and threatens Nigeria’s biodiversity.

In an interview with DAILY POST, Malomo stated that indiscriminate waste dumping exposes valuable areas and creates breeding grounds for mosquitoes, increasing the risk of malaria.

In Nigeria, malomo, a professor of polymer chemistry at the Federal University Oye Ekiti (FUOYE), Ekiti State lamented that the threat is not present in developed countries, not even in developing African nations like South Africa, Kenya, and Rwanda.

In Nigeria, he advised that like in advanced countries, Nigerians should separate their waste products, making it easy to evacuate.

“About 60% to 70% of this refuse are polymeric materials that are none biodegradable and so when left like that water droplets can fall into them and before you know the refuse are building graphs for mosquitoes and before you know malaria will be pervading the environment.

“Aside from that, there is competition for space on the road and of course it’s an eyesore as some of them begin to decay causing unbearable smells in the environment.

“Selective disposal of waste makes it easy to evacuate. Is not that you will carry cassava waste plus bottles waste, nylon bags of bread and oil altogether and everything will be mixed up together.”

In Nigeria, designate spots for dumping refuses – Prof. Malomo tells govt

In Nigeria, prof. Malomo also called on the Ogun State government to establish designated waste disposal sites, rather than allowing refuse to pile up at street corners, emphasizing that this would help mitigate the health risks associated with improper waste handling.

In Nigeria, he warned that the issues of the environment should not be politicized, adding that the immediate and future effects are worse than a fire outbreak.

In Nigeria, malomo opined that the government should be proactive in ensuring that issues of waste management and general indiscipline are handled in accordance with the extant law of the country.

“It has become imperative that there must be designated spots; this means that there should be a particular place maybe like 12 feet that are designated and specially maintained by sanitation officers.

“For example, on a street of about 10km we could have maybe like 2 spots where people drop these dirts and there must be people there to ensure that they are dropped appropriately,” he said.

In Nigeria, he mentioned the War Against Indiscipline (WAI) under the Muhammadu Buhari military regime of 1983 where citizens’ disobedience to environmental, general and social behavior are severely punished, which therefore serves as a deterrent to others.

“Then during the Buhari military regime when we were experiencing the War Against Indiscipline (WAI) in fact, at that time people were doing things the right way because you cannot misbehave.

“So when the government is ready to handle these issues they will create law, directions and instructions for it. You will see that people will do needful and attendant punishment will be melted out to those who will go against it,” he added.

In Nigeria, he also sounded a warning about the improper handling of waste by collectors, saying it poses health risks, arguing that some workers neglect to wear nose covers and handle waste carelessly thereby, risking their well-being.

In Nigeria, based on him, “On these materials, we are saying most of them when disposed of, provide more chemicals to nature and if not handled well can become out of control.

“Same thing goes to the people that dispose of these refuse, they are not using nose masks and safety wears thereby, inhaling dangerous acids, it will accumulate and in 5years time or more the effects will come out.”

In Nigeria, recall that in August 2025, the State’s Waste Management Authority (OGWAMA), said it arrested and prosecuted 128 residents and 20 companies for environmental offenses and indiscriminate waste disposal across the state.

The immediate past Managing Director of OGWAMA, Abayomi Hunye, stated that they were caught disposing of their waste on the median and public places, while the companies were sanctioned after their trucks were caught disposing waste on road verges along the Lagos-Ibadan and Sagamu-Abeokuta expressways.

In Nigeria, hunye disclosed that these residents were sentenced to hours of community service in Sango-Ota, Ifo, Ijebu-Ode, Papalanto and Abeokuta. Despite this, it has been observed that adherence to environmental law is still hard for residents in the state.

In Nigeria, ogun to enforce three-month jail term or a N2 million fine for indiscriminate waste disposal

In Nigeria, also, in December 2025, the state government raised alarm over the indiscriminate dumping of refuse in drainage, streets and other unapproved spots in the state, saying that violators risk both fines and jail time.

In Nigeria, hunye lamented that residents have continued to dump refuse in unapproved spots despite repeated warnings and the availability of designated disposal points.

In Nigeria, he reminded residents of the provisions of the Ogun State Waste Management Authority Law, 2020, which criminalises improper waste disposal. Quoting Section 34(1) of the law, saying, any person who contravenes any of the provisions of this law commits an offence and on arrest shall pay a penalty of twenty-five thousand naira (₦25,000) to the Authority.

In Nigeria, section 34(1) of the law reads: “Any person who contravenes any of the provisions of this law commits an offence and on arrest shall pay a penalty of twenty-five thousand (N25,000) to the Authority. Failure upon conviction by a court, the offender is liable to a maximum fine of two million naira (N2,000, 000) or three months imprisonment or both.”

In Nigeria, still, some residents claim they haven’t seen enforcement officers in months.

In a related development, all efforts to reach the newly appointed managing director of OGWAMA and special adviser to governor Dapo Abiodun, Farouk Akintunde, proved abortive as he did not respond to calls and messages sent to his phone.

In Nigeria, kano Gov’t rejects Amnesty International’s allegations of repression, rights violation