LAWMA CRACKS DOWN ON ROADSIDE TRADING AND UNAUTHORISED CART PUSHERS AT AGO PALACE MARKET

The Lagos Waste Management Authority has commenced enforcement against illegal trading and unauthorised cart-pushing activities at Ago Palace Way Market following violations identified during a monitoring exercise. The enforcement followed observations made by LAWMA’s Project WISE team during an inspection carried out on September 15, 2026.

According to the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of LAWMA, Muyiwa Gbadegesin, traders were found selling goods along the road and occupying other unauthorised spaces within the market area. The traders were also reportedly using cart pushers to evacuate waste generated from their businesses, a practice the authority said was contributing to indiscriminate dumping and creating environmental and traffic problems.

Gbadegesin said the activities were obstructing pedestrian movement and disrupting traffic flow around the market. He stressed that simply moving waste away from a shop or trading area does not amount to proper disposal if the waste is subsequently dumped on another street or in another community, thereby transferring the environmental problem to another location.

The LAWMA boss directed traders to conduct their businesses only in authorised locations and use their assigned Private Sector Participation operators for waste collection. He also warned that roads and walkways must remain free from obstruction, stressing that proper waste disposal and compliance with environmental regulations were necessary to maintain a clean and orderly market environment.

Gbadegesin said the ongoing enforcement covers both illegal trading and unauthorised cart-pusher activities, with monitoring expected to continue after the immediate operation. He said the real measure of success would not simply be whether the area was cleared during the enforcement exercise, but whether traders maintained compliance, waste was properly collected and the market remained free from renewed obstruction and indiscriminate dumping.