Lagos seals off Idera market over ‘environmental pollution’

The Lagos State Environmental Sanitation Corps (LAGESC) says it has sealed off the Idera market in the Oshodi metropolis.

In a statement on Thursday, Ajayi Lukman, LAGESC spokesperson, said the agency sealed the market due to unhygienic practices and indiscriminate dumping of refuse, which contravened the environmental law of the state.

He said the measure was taken to enforce adherence to environmental cleanliness across registered markets in the state.

‘‘Our operatives stationed across the Oshodi division during routine market monitoring identified the filth, unhygienic practices, and indiscriminate dumping of refuse around the Idera Market area, which prompted us to seal off the market until further notice,” the statement reads.

Lukman quoted Olaniyi Cole, the corps marshal of the agency, as decrying the level of hygiene at the market, which could lead to an outbreak of diseases.

He said Cole frowned at the inability of the market leadership to provide a valid waste collection contract, which resulted in the heaps of refuse in the facility.

He added that the display of wares for sale on road setbacks, lay-bys, medians, verges, kerbs, street trading, and hawking remained banned in the metropolis.

The LAGESC corps marshal reiterated the ban on the sales, distribution, and usage of styrofoam in the state, noting that anyone found culpable would be punished decisively.