As Lagos State considers reinstating the monthly environmental sanitation exercise, a collective cleanup day last held in 2016, some stakeholders are debating its potential effectiveness in the face of persistent waste management shortcomings.

With the state’s waste collection infrastructure under strain and reports of blocked drainage systems and widespread refuse accumulation, they argued that reinstating the policy carries risks and downsides that may outweigh its benefits unless reforms and supporting structures are secured first. They noted that there is therefore a pressing need to assess whether this periodic exercise can address systemic waste challenges or if it will simply serve as a symbolic gesture.

While those who are against the introduction stated that there are legal, economic, social, and practical reasons why the state government should refrain from reintroducing the monthly environmental sanitation exercise in its traditional compulsory form, particularly with movement restrictions, those in support argued that bringing back the monthly exercise will help foster a stronger culture of cleanliness and mobilise residents toward improved environmental behaviour thereby helping to address persistent refuse issues in high-risk locations.

Commenting, a journalist, Mr. Muyiwa Akintunde said: “I can understand what is driving the reintroduction of that policy, Lagos is becoming dirtier and dirtier by the day. But monthly environmental sanitation is only a palliative to a serious medical condition that requires surgery.”

For him, there has to be an aggressive campaign to make the people understand why they should clean their environment as a matter of habit, not compulsion. “And the facilities for instant disposal of the refuse must be provided at the doorsteps of the people. Having provided the sensitisation and the disposal mechanism, strict enforcement must follow.”

On how reintroducing the monthly sanitation exercise could impact economic activity and daily routines in Lagos, considering the city’s size and commercial dynamics, Akintunde said: “Unfortunately, we are a country that does not count economic losses as a result of certain habits or policies.

“Grounding the megacity of Lagos for hours will no doubt hurt the economy of the state, as the government, corporate bodies and individuals struggle to make a living in this harsh economic time.

“That is why I do not encourage the restrictions. And I say again that the government should diligently work on making the people buy into its policy to ensure that Lagos has a clean environment.”

He added that whether it is monthly sanitation or otherwise, no waste management policy can succeed without a drainage system that is not blocked by waste soon after it’s put in place.

“Everything that is required to encourage the citizens to maintain a clean environment should be put in place, so that when sanctions are then applied against violators, there are no grumblings.

“I am not sure there is any individual right or freedom that will support keeping a dirty environment. That, in itself, is a violation of others’ rights to live in a clean society.”

Similarly, Senior Programme Manager, Community Life Project, Francis Onahor, who wondered what happened to the court judgement that stopped the exercise, said reintroducing monthly environmental sanitation will not solve the poor waste management system in Lagos.

“It may raise awareness about environmental cleanliness, encourage community participation, remove accumulated waste periodically, reinforce civic responsibility, and improve drainage cleaning before the rainy season.

“However, it will not stop the daily dumping of refuse by the roadside or solve waste collection gaps in the city. It can become ceremonial and ineffective, like it was in the past. It will be hard to enforce in a mega city like Lagos, where residents tend to clean temporarily but revert afterward.

“Why do we want to go back to an analog response when we can think of better and improved ways of managing waste in a megacity like Lagos? People dump refuse on roadsides mainly because waste collection is unreliable, expensive, or inaccessible. If waste collection is poor, sanitation days will only treat symptoms, not the root causes.

“The root causes are weak waste collection systems, cost barriers, lack of convenient disposal points, weak enforcement, and poor environmental culture.”

According to Onahor, the smart choice would be to create ward-level environmental officers, whose responsibility would be to educate residents, track offenders, and monitor dumping spots; care should, however, be taken so these officers don’t turn this into an avenue for revenue.

He also stated that Lagos needs more mini transfer stations, communal bins, and skip containers. Residents should not walk more than 200 – 300 metres to dispose of waste. Convenience reduces dumping.

“If the Lagos government really wants a high-impact intervention, it should guarantee weekly waste collection with published schedules, a hotline for missed pickups, introduce PSP performance contracts, and public dashboards. When waste is collected reliably, roadside dumping drops dramatically.

“Environmental sanitation alone is a symbolic solution. The real solution is to make proper waste disposal easier than illegal dumping. When legal disposal is cheap, convenient, and reliable, roadside dumping declines naturally.

“Growing up in the 80s, we had several dumping sites in our Federal Housing Estate, depending on where you lived in the Estate. You would easily see children walking to the refuse dump to dispose of their waste. Occasionally, the waste bins get filled up, and we start dumping our refuse by the side of the bins, but the government always responds immediately to clear the refuse and empty the bins.

“Now, I see refuse dumped in front of houses on virtually every street in Lagos, and it will be there for days and weeks, with no pickup. If you reintroduce the monthly environmental sanitation, how will it resolve the fact that waste is not collected by those who are required to collect it?” Onahor said.

A lawyer, Barnabas Sonayon also insisted that the reintroduction of monthly environmental sanitation can produce modest behavioural improvements, particularly in raising public consciousness about proper waste disposal and environmental responsibility.

“However, sanitation exercises alone cannot resolve Lagos waste management challenges. Sustainable impact will depend on strengthening structured waste collection, enforcement against indiscriminate dumping, and improved coordination between residents, private waste operators, and government agencies.