LAWMA: DEATH ON THE
HIGHWAY (UNSUNG HEROES)
WRITTEN BY: MIKEL
FADEYI, MCSE, NIIT.
My mobile Wikipedia defines cleanliness as: “the abstract
state of being clean and free from dirt. It is meant to be achieved and
maintained through a process”. It can also be linked to moral superiority or
respectability (purity), which has played a role in impacting cultural values
in relation to social class, humanitarianism and cultural imperialism.
No doubt, cleanliness is next to godliness. It unveils the
true face of health and beauty. That is, hygiene and disease prevention in our
homes, office, market, among others.
Of course, there are procedures and habits that go
hand-in-hand for the purpose of maintenance and prevention. Cleanliness can
also be one of the characteristics of a person who doesn’t like dirt or prevent
dirtying.
However, it is wise to bear in mind that the Nigerian oil boom
(early 1970s) compounded the emerging industrialization-cum-urbanization and
unavoidably led to the official management of solid waste in the country. There
was no “Option B” because the high volume of waste was becoming increasingly
difficult for government to control.
Embarrassingly, the
straw that broke the camel’s back was the world press classification of Lagos
as the “dirtiest” city capital during FESTAC’77. This was a slap on the face of
Nigeria and a kick in the teeth of Lagos. This period was as tough as raw hide.
Speedily and amazingly, in that same year –April 1977- the
first waste management outfit in West Africa was instituted as Lagos State
Refuse Disposal Board (LSRDB). It got a new name in 1981: Lagos State Waste
Disposal Board, LSWDB.
Lagos State finally grabbed the bull by the horns when she
introduced LAWMA (Lagos State Waste Management Authority) in 1991, under Edict
No. 55. This paved way for added responsibility of collection and disposal of
municipal and industrial waste, as well as the provision of commercial waste
services to state and local governments. LAWMA also ensure adequate public
enlightenment / education for reorientation on decent waste collection and
disposal habits, not leaving out effective partnership with the private sector
and other stake holders (tenement, commercial premises, industrial premises,
government premises, hospitals, schools, motor parks, factories, markets,
construction sites, offices, etc) in waste management.
Methinks government’s intention was to ensure Lagos state shares
a resemblance with Stockwood Park in Luton, Bedfordshire in UK, a Spartan-clean
place of tourist attraction with formal gardens, crafts, museum, extensive
golfing facilities, house stables and connected with trees, grasses and animals,
enjoying musical concerts and aesthetic exhibitions.
Further afield, without digressing, the core business of this
article is to critically examine the Highway Sanitation Unit of LAWMA. They are
also known as the “Litter Marshals” saddled with the (dangerous) responsibility
of clearing all the mish-mash mess on Lagos highways. They strive
(cleaning/sweeping/brushing) to bring out the beauty in Lagos state, day-in,
day-out.
Matter-of-factly, at inception, we had 90 companies (service
providers) with not less than 1,800 employees. But presently, due to
unemployment bite, LAWMA has over 11,983 workers with no age or class
discrimination, educated or illiterate, able or disabled. The physically
challenged ones sweep the pedestrian bridges and get 10, 000 naira monthly
allowance. These unsung heroes remove hazardous objects, junks, tyres, even
“shit” from the roads, gravel to gravel. When man adds value to something, he
gets valued for something. LAWMA highway workers have become as indispensable
as air.
But be it as it may, the dangers of sweep major Lagos roads
and streets are insurmountably uncountable.
This very risky, monotonously back-breaking task is attached to the high
level of exposure to ceaseless movement of cars, trucks, bikes, etc. These
people work with perpetual fear and tension of unpredictability. As the death
toll keeps rising, they have developed a bloody mindset about the dangers of
the job. We have read and heard about their lamentations about reckless,
hit-and-run Lagos drivers and recalcitrant bike riders (okada). Not a few of
these highway workers have revealed that they only took the job because they
don’t have any alternative to survival.
Surprisingly, when this write-up was being put together
(29/08/15), during the environmental sanitation, I received a news alert (news
helm online) that a LAWMA official was knocked down by a speeding green SUV
along Apongbon, Lagos Island. The driver didn’t wait and eyewitnesses said the
woman died right in front of the car. That is not all.
On September 9, 2014 (Punch Metro), a hit-and-run jeep driver
hit two female (Lateefat Sulyman and
Fatimoh Ajetunmobi) LAWMA highway workers along Iyana Oworo Expressway, Lagos.
The former was crushed to death but the latter was seriously injured and taken
to the hospital.
On April 29, 2014, around 2.15pm, (e-247 Mag.), tragedy
struck at the ever-busy Ojota , Lagos, when a fast-moving truck veered off its
lane to another lane and killed a five-month pregnant LAWMA worker. Her
pregnancy was totally ruptured and her stomach ripped, leaving her guts
spilling out to the road. What an irretrievably shattered dream!
Recently at Mobolaji-Bank Anthony Way, Ikeja, a vehicle
appeared from the Ikeja end of the road in full speed and killed another LAWMA
official –Iya Afeez. The car smashed her against a pole, applied the brake
momentarily and sped off. The bleeding woman lay crumpled by roadside and
people were too terrified to move closer to her as she gradually gave up the
ghost.
As a concerned citizen, there is need to capture the
experiences, anxieties and expectations of the highway sweepers. Despite what
these people scale through daily, they only get meagre salaries (N10,000 –
N18,000), work for long hours (6am – 1pm; 1pm-7pm) and health challenges.
As revealed by the Managing Director of LAWMA, Ola Oresanya,
LAWMA has, in no small way, helped in poverty eradication through job creation
and reducing crime tendency in the state, which should not be overshadowed by avoidably
occasional hazards witnessed on the highways. LAWMA has strived as a social
obligation to the people, as part of the promises made by government to attain
and maintain social balance, with multiplier effect.
Conclusively, government can do better. Apart from the
reflective uniforms for visibility of oncoming motorists on the highway, there
is need for the police force or well-equipped safety corps to help ensure the
security of LAWMA workers on highways. Big road signs should also be placed
strategically at the point of duty. There should also be continuous training
and retraining of staff on safety measures and first aid tips. Due to regular
contact with thick dust, the sweepers are liable to contact the Lyme disease, a
bacterial infection with Borrelia burgdorferi (skin rashes, joint pains,
nervous system malfunctioning, etc), apart from the hand gloves/protective
shoes/head covers/protective mask, there is need for daily vitamins to boost
their immune system and Annual General Medical Evaluation. Insurance packages
to provide compensation for death, disability, medical expenses, etc should be
activated.
They deserve
National Awards please!
