All the Private Sector Participants (PSP) who are the operators of domestic and commercial wastes in Lagos State, have approached the Lagos High Court to stop the Lagos State Government from victimising them on account of the case that they filed in court to challenge the proposal by the government to displace them.

News Express recalls that on January 17, 2017, the PSP operators filed a suit at the Lagos High Court, to stop the Lagos State Government from displacing them or replacing them with new operators. In the main suit, filed on their behalf by eminent lawyer and human rights activist, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, the PSP waste operators are asking the Court to uphold and protect their existing rights and benefits so that the government will not appoint new operators to replace them. Listed as defendants in that suit are the Lagos State Government, the Attorney-General of Lagos State, Commissioner for the Environment, the proposed foreign operators and their local agents, that is Visionscape Group, Visionscape Santiation Solutions Limited and ABC Sanitation Solutions Limited.

After being served with the new suit however, the Lagos State Government swung into action to deal with and victimise the operators for daring to sue the government. To this end, the government placed an advertorial in The PUNCH newspaper of February 6, 2017, asking the general public to apply for franchise for waste collection and disposal, in an attempt to outsmart the existing waste operators and to overreach the case pending in court. Consequently, the operators have now approached the court for an order of injunction to restrain the Lagos State Government from implementing or further implementing, from executing or further execution, or in any other manner enforcing or giving effect to the provisions contained in the PUBLIC NOTICE made on the 6th day of February, 2017 for invitation to recertify WASTE MANAGEMENT COMPANIES (PSP Operators) currently operating solid waste management in Lagos State pending the hearing and final determination of the existing suit.

In the new motion for injunction, the waste operators are contending that it will be unfair that whilst their case is still pending in court and has not been determined on the merit, for the Lagos State Government to proceed to advertise their jobs, which is the subject matter of the pending court case, to the whole world. They contend further that the Ministry of the Environment which is spearheading the new recruitment drive, is not recognised by any law in the state, to supervise or be involved in waste management, collection or disposal.

The case is listed to be heard on Tuesday, February 21, 2017, before the Honourble Justice Oyekan-Abdullahi of the Lagos High Court Annexe, Tafawa Balewa Square, Lagos.

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