The Ogun State Government has officially inaugurated a 15-member Joint Monitoring Committee in a move to eliminate environmental pollution and address the alarming reports of lead poisoning in the Ogijo axis.
The committee, according to a statement issued on Wednesday, is tasked with providing localised oversight and serving as a critical watchdog over the operations of Used Lead Acid Batteries (ULAB) recycling facilities within the community.
Inaugurating the committee on Wednesday, the Commissioner for Environment, Ola Oresanya, emphasised that the members were strategically selected based on their residential proximity to the recycling plants. This ensures that those most affected by the industrial activities have a direct hand in monitoring them.
He said, “The Committee would serve as a bridge between the state government and the community.
“Environmental protection cannot be achieved through regulation alone as it requires community vigilance, shared responsibility, and mutual trust.”
The Commissioner further noted that the committee’s mandate includes facilitating the reporting of health concerns and supporting transparency in the remediation and compliance processes.
Oresanya issued a final warning to ULAB operators, making it clear that the state would not sacrifice the lives of its citizens for industrial profit.
“To the Used Lead Acid Batteries (ULAB) operators, let me be equivocal that your economic activities must never compromise human health or environmental integrity when you are conditionally reopened,” he warned.
“Compliance with environmental health and safety standards are mandatory, and any of the facilities that fails to meet prescribed requirements will not be permitted to operate”, he said.
The initiative received strong backing from both state and federal regulatory bodies.
General Manager of the Ogun State Environmental Protection Agency, Kehinde Bello, called on all stakeholders to support the government in restoring environmental sanity to Ogijo, pledging OGEPA’s full technical support to the committee.
Representing the federal perspective, the South-West Director of the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency, Mr. Jack Peniel, assured residents that national standards would be strictly enforced.
“The national agency will ensure strict compliance with environmental standards to restore a conducive environment back to Ogijo,” Peniel noted.
The Ologijo of Ogijo, Oba Kazim Gbadamosi, who was present at the inauguration, urged the factory operators to view the safety standards as non-negotiable.
He also charged the newly minted committee members to be diligent and “act in the best interest of public health.”
The committee’s role is described as both “preventive and protective,” aimed at the early detection of environmental risks to ensure that the “alleged lead poisoning” becomes a thing of the past.
