If you live in Lagos right now, you don't need anyone to tell you about the rubbish. It's on your street; it's blocking the gutters; it's smelling up major roads from Yaba to Lekki. Now, that mess has cost the head of LAWMA his job.

Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has reportedly sacked the Managing Director of the Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA), Dr Muyiwa Gbadegesin, and replaced him with Dr Hassan Sanuth.

For anyone who has lived in Lagos long enough, LAWMA drama feels like a recurring decimal.

Lagos generates over 13,000 tonnes of waste every single day - making it one of the biggest waste producers in Africa. With over 22 million people crammed into Nigeria's smallest state by landmass, managing that waste is a logistical nightmare.

LAWMA was set up in the late 70s as the Lagos State Refuse Disposal Board and rebranded over the years. The real game-changer was in the early 2000s under Bola Tinubu and then Babatunde Fashola, when the Private Sector Participation (PSP) operators were brought in. You know them - those blue trucks with the LAWMA logo that are supposed to come weekly.

The system worked, relatively, until it didn't. Operators complain about diesel costs, bad roads to dumpsites, and unpaid bills from residents. Residents complain operators don't show up for weeks. The result? We go back to old habits - dumping in canals, which then causes flooding.

Just last month, Governor Sanwo-Olu himself visited Olusosun Dumpsite with Deputy Governor Obafemi Hamzat and called the situation across Lagos “embarrassing”. He declared a state of emergency on waste management, ordered a full review of LAWMA’s operations, and blamed PSP operators for dropping the ball.

He also revealed that recent fire incidents at Olusosun and Solous 3 dumpsites had disrupted operations, and that compaction work was ongoing. Once completed, each dumpsite is expected to take about 450 trucks daily - doubling capacity.

Let's be honest, this isn't just about politics. It's about you trying to leave your house in Surulere and having to tiptoe around black bags that have been there for 10 days. It's about traders in Oyingbo selling food next to overflowing bins. It's about the health risk - cholera, malaria from blocked drains, respiratory issues from open burning.

For the average LAWMA street sweeper in that orange uniform you see by 5 am every morning, it’s also about working with broken tools while residents pour insults on them.

Why it Matters?

A change of MD is not just musical chairs. LAWMA is the frontline agency for public health in Lagos. If waste collection fails, everything else fails - our environment, our roads, even our property values. With the rainy season getting more unpredictable, blocked drains from refuse could mean more flooding in places like Ajegunle, Ikeja and Lagos Island.

It also tests Sanwo-Olu's second-term promise of a cleaner, more liveable Lagos under his T.H.E.M.E.S+ agenda.

What Can Sanuth Do Differently?

Dr Hassan Sanuth is not new to the system. Coming from Sanitation Services, he knows the ministry inside out. But he has three urgent fires to put out:

1. Fix the PSP Crisis: Operators say the business is no longer profitable. Will the government review tariffs or subsidise diesel?

2. Fix the Dumpsites: Olusosun has been slated for closure for over 15 years, but Lagos still has nowhere else to dump. The Epe landfill is not fully operational for municipal waste.

3. Enforce Payment & Discipline: Many estates and streets simply don't pay PSP. And enforcement against illegal dumping has been weak.

What Next?

All eyes will be on Alausa for an official confirmation this week.

Lagosians will want to see trucks, not just press statements. Sanuth's first 30 days will be judged by one thing only: is the rubbish disappearing?

If you are in Lagos, now is a good time to pay your PSP operator, stop dumping in drains, and report missed pickups on the LAWMA app.

We will keep tracking developments at cbinewstv.com.

What is waste collection like in your area? Have your PSP operators been coming? Let us know in the comments.

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