Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, has called on residents of Lagos State to ignore the restriction of movement imposed by the government for the monthly environmental sanitation exercise.

The senior lawyer insisted that residents were free to go about their normal activities during the exercise, stating that there is no law restricting movement.

The state government on Friday insisted that its monthly environmental sanitation exercise remains valid and will proceed as scheduled, stating that no court decision has invalidated the initiative.

It urged residents to stay back at home and participate fully in the exercise billed for Saturday, April 25 between the hours of 6.30am and 8.30am.

In a statement ahead of the exercise, the state Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, on X on Friday, dismissed claims that the programme had been halted by a court ruling.

“No court pronouncement has invalidated this exercise. The state proceeded to the Court of Appeal, and judgment was delivered in our favour. The court affirmed that the laws used for the implementation and enforcement of environmental sanitation are legitimate and constitutional,” he said.

He urged residents to disregard what he described as misinformation surrounding the legality of the exercise.

The return of the monthly environmental sanitation exercise in the state was announced by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on March 14 when he led the Deputy Governor, Obafemi Hamzat, and other state officials to monitor and clean the environment at Agege Motor Road, Mushin.

But Falana criticised the reintroduction of the exercise which restricts residents’ movement for three hours on the last Saturday of every month, describing the move as unconstitutional and contemptuous of a subsisting court judgment.

Speaking with Saturday PUNCH, Falana said available information at his disposal showed that the state government had not reintroduced the compulsory monthly sanitation exercise that previously enforced movement restrictions.

“From the information at my disposal, the Lagos State Government has not reintroduced compulsory monthly sanitation exercise. To that extent, residents are at liberty to carry on their legitimate business during the sanitation exercise as the government has not restricted their movement in any manner whatsoever.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the restriction of movement is voluntary and not compulsory,” Falana said.

He, however, noted that the state government had continued to encourage residents to participate in environmental sanitation by cleaning their surroundings between 6:30am and 8:30am on the last Saturday of every month.

According to him, residents are also expected to cooperate with officials of the Lagos State Waste Management Authority during the two-hour exercise, particularly in the collection and proper disposal of waste across the state.

Falana argued that Lagos cannot sustain policies rooted in military-era practices, especially those that infringe on citizens’ freedom of movement.

“The Lagos State Government cannot afford to continue with the military legacy of restricting the movement of citizens,” he said.

He added that the government’s commitment to environmental management is already reflected in its fiscal priorities, noting that N236bn was allocated in the 2026 budget for waste management, drainage expansion and environmental protection. (PUNCH)