Sanitation exercise lawful, movement not restricted – Lagos AG

The Lagos State Government has defended the reintroduction of the monthly environmental sanitation exercise, insisting that it is lawful and does not infringe on residents’ right to freedom of movement.

The Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Lawal Pedro, said media reports suggesting otherwise misrepresented the legal position.

“The narration in the media on the Court of Appeal ruling in respect of the case on environmental sanitation in Lagos is not correct,” he said in a statement issued on April 25, 2026.

Pedro stated that the subsisting judgment of the Court of Appeal of Nigeria in Appeal No. CA/L/381/2015, delivered on November 23, 2021, supported the government’s position.

“The court held that the environmental sanitation exercise in Lagos State was valid and backed by law and that the fundamental right of the applicant, Mr Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, was not breached,” he said.

He added that Adegboruwa, dissatisfied with the judgment, appealed to the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

“The Supreme Court is yet to set aside the judgment of the Court of Appeal… it will not be unlawful to have a controlled movement during the monthly environmental sanitation exercise,” Pedro said.

The Attorney-General dismissed reliance on an earlier Court of Appeal decision in Faith Okafor v. Lagos State Government & Anor.

“That judgment cannot be regarded as the extant position of the law and can be said to have been superseded by the current 2021 judgment,” he stated.

Pedro clarified that the state has not imposed a total restriction on movement during the exercise.

“What the government introduced is a controlled movement of residents. Residents are free to go anywhere they wish through roads and streets that are not blocked,” he said.

He explained that only areas undergoing sanitation activities may be temporarily restricted.

“In other words, streets where cleaning is ongoing may be blocked to protect people and officials involved in the exercise from motorists,” he added.

Pedro maintained that, in the absence of any contrary judgment, the state government was acting within the law.

He stressed that the policy balances environmental sanitation efforts with the preservation of residents’ fundamental rights.

Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Adegboruwa, had on Saturday condemned the enforcement of the monthly environmental sanitation exercise in Lagos State, describing it as illegal and unconstitutional.

In a statement, Adegboruwa alleged that residents were forcibly restricted in their homes under the guise of sanitation enforcement.

“On Saturday, April 25, 2026, Lagosians were forced to stay in their homes by the Lagos State Government under the guise of enforcement of monthly environmental sanitation,” he said.

He accused the government of deploying law enforcement agencies and other actors to intimidate citizens.

“In forceful enforcement of this illegal policy, the government deployed all its arsenals… to harass, intimidate and threaten innocent citizens from the lawful exercise of their fundamental and constitutional rights to move freely,” he added.

Adegboruwa challenged the legal foundation of the exercise, insisting that no valid law supported movement restriction for sanitation in Lagos State.

“For the avoidance of any doubt whatsoever, there is currently no law in force in Lagos State which permits the government to restrict movement of persons for the purpose of enforcing monthly environmental sanitation,” he said.

He further dared the government to make public any law it claims to rely on.

Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, however, commended residents for their participation in the reintroduced monthly sanitation exercise.

The state government said the exercise recorded impressive turnout across various parts of Lagos, including Ikorodu, Badagry, Lagos Island, Lagos Mainland, Alimosho, Ikeja and Agege.

In a statement issued on Sunday by the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotoso, the governor praised Lagosians for embracing the initiative and contributing to environmental cleanliness.

“I thank Lagosians who joined the call to clean up our environment as a sure step to good health.

“That is patriotic; it is the Spirit of Lagos that we often speak about. We should continue to walk that path,” Sanwo-Olu said.

The governor urged residents to desist from indiscriminate dumping of refuse, especially as the rainy season approaches.

According to the statement, the government had intensified the clearing of gutters and drainage systems across the state to prevent flooding, following forecasts of heavy rainfall.

It added that the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, in collaboration with the Ministry of Information and Strategy, has launched a campaign against indiscriminate waste disposal and blockage of drainage channels.