The Lagos State Government says it will begin rewarding the cleanest local government after each monthly environmental sanitation exercise, as the reintroduced programme continues across the state. The Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, disclosed this on Saturday while monitoring the exercise around Obalende in the Ikoyi area.

He said the initiative would promote healthy competition among local governments and encourage sustained cleanliness. According to him, the cleanest council from the latest exercise would be assessed and announced within the week for recognition.

The sanitation exercise holds on the last Saturday of every month between 6:30 a.m. and 8:30 a.m. Wahab commended residents for their participation, estimating compliance at over 98 per cent and describing the response as impressive.

He noted that reduced commercial activity and voluntary participation reflected residents’ willingness to keep the state clean. The commissioner added that the programme aims to rebuild a culture where residents dedicate two hours monthly to environmental sanitation.

On the controversy over movement restriction, Wahab said the government had favourable court judgments affirming its authority but chose to emphasise voluntary compliance. He urged residents to ignore misinformation and continue participating in the exercise.

Also speaking, the governor’s wife, Dr Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, described the turnout as encouraging, noting that the exercise marked the first full implementation since it was flagged off. She said residents complied with guidelines, with limited trading activities observed during the period.

She encouraged Lagosians to adopt daily sanitation habits and said students were included to instil environmental awareness early. According to her, involving young people would help build a lasting culture of cleanliness.

However, human rights lawyer Femi Falana disagreed with any form of movement restriction during the exercise. He said residents were free to go about their lawful activities, insisting there was no law compelling them to stay indoors.

Falana stated that participation should remain voluntary and not enforced. He added that while residents should cooperate with waste management officials, restricting movement would be unconstitutional and reminiscent of military-era policies.

The debate follows the reintroduction of the monthly sanitation exercise announced by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu in March. The government maintains that the programme remains valid, while critics argue that any compulsory restriction on movement lacks legal backing.