Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, has faulted the decision by the Lagos State Government to revive the monthly environmental sanitation exercise that places movement restrictions on residents for three hours on the last Saturday of every month.
Falana said the development brings back memories of what he described as an outdated practice from Nigeria’s era of military rule.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the 15th of March, 2026, in response to the policy, the senior lawyer argued that bringing back the sanitation restriction lacks justification, especially when viewed against the large funds earmarked for environmental management in the state.
He pointed out that the 2026 Appropriation Law of Lagos State set aside about N236 billion for environmental issues, including waste management and sanitation programmes. According to him, the allocation was approved by lawmakers to strengthen systems responsible for keeping the state clean.
Falana maintained that the state government should focus its attention on expanding the workforce in the sanitation sector and purchasing modern tools instead of restricting residents’ movement.
He said more sanitation personnel should be recruited and modern equipment introduced, including mechanical sweepers for clearing heavy debris and vacuum sweepers designed to remove dust and litter from roads.
The lawyer also drew attention to a previous court ruling involving the case of Faith Okafor vs Lagos State Government, which he said had already declared movement restrictions during sanitation hours unlawful.
Falana explained that the case stemmed from the arrest of a woman, Faith Okafor, on the 25th of May, 2013, she was accused of breaching the movement restriction imposed during the monthly sanitation exercise between 7 a.m. and 10 a.m.
Okafor was reportedly detained alongside other residents and taken before a special offences court.
There, she pleaded guilty and paid a fine of N2,000 after being charged with wandering and loitering during the sanitation period.
After settling the fine, she approached the High Court of Lagos State, arguing that the arrest violated her constitutional rights to dignity, personal liberty and freedom of movement. The court, however, dismissed her suit.
Dissatisfied with the decision, she challenged the judgment at the Court of Appeal of Nigeria.
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The Court of Appeal of Nigeria, Lagos Division, later ruled in her favour, stating that the restriction on movement during environmental sanitation hours had no legal basis and violated citizens’ constitutional rights.
The appellate court also ruled that directives issued by a state governor cannot stand as law and cannot serve as grounds for arresting, prosecuting or convicting residents.
In a concurring judgment, Biobell Abraham Georgewill cautioned against executive directives being allowed to override the rule of law.
“It is my view that democracy thrives more on obeying and promoting the rule of law rather than the whims and caprices of the leaders against the lead,” the judge said.
He added that charging a citizen for an offence not defined in any written law, but based only on a governor’s directive, could open the door to a dangerous situation where public officials wield “infinite, absolute and autocratic powers” that run contrary to constitutional safeguards.
Falana urged the Lagos State Government to abandon the plan to bring back the monthly sanitation restriction, warning that doing so would amount to ignoring the decision already delivered by the appellate court.