Lagos State Government has issued a 24-hour ultimatum to traders at Alaba Rago Market, warning of immediate closure if they fail to comply with the state’s environmental regulations.
Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Mr. Tokunbo Wahab, delivered the warning on Sunday following an unscheduled inspection of Alaba Rago Market and other areas, including Idi-Araba and Orile-Iganmu.
Wahab said the market had previously been shut down in 2024 over sanitation violations, but traders appear to have returned to their old ways.
“We have been to Alaba Rago before, sometime last year, and we had to seal the market to compel compliance,” Wahab said. “Unfortunately, we may have to revisit that action. By tomorrow evening, if the traders have not cleaned up the environment as agreed, we will be forced to take appropriate sanctions.”
According to the commissioner, the market has degenerated into an illegal dumpsite, with traders pushing garbage onto public roads and clogging the drainage system. During Sunday’s visit, he noted visible waste accumulation and total disregard for drainage alignment.
“They now turn the place into a waste dump site. They’ve blocked the drainage channels and littered the surroundings. If they don’t clean it up by the deadline, we will act.”, Wahab said.
The visit also exposed broader challenges within Lagos’ waste management ecosystem. In Idi-Araba, Wahab said he witnessed operations linked to a “cart-pusher syndicate”—an activity banned under the Lagos State Environmental Management and Protection Law.
“For the past few weeks, there’s been statewide enforcement against cart-pushing,” Wahab explained. “But we now have intelligence that suggests a syndicate is coordinating this illegal activity around Idi-Araba. Law enforcement agencies will be briefed this week based on what we discovered today.”
