Lagos Begins Arrest of Buyers Patronising Illegal Roadside Traders Next Week

The Lagos State Government, through the Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA), will begin arresting and prosecuting people who buy goods from illegal roadside traders next week.

The Lagos State Government, through the Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA), will begin arresting and prosecuting people who buy goods from illegal roadside traders next week.

LAWMA Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Dr Muyiwa Gbadegesin disclosed this at the Authority’s headquarters on Tuesday, September 8, 2026.

The measure is in accordance with Section 151, Subsection 2 of the Lagos State Environmental Management and Protection Law 2017 and forms part of a renewed enforcement strategy to curb illegal trading, indiscriminate waste disposal and the obstruction of public infrastructure across Lagos State.

What he is saying

Gbadegesin explained that enforcement would no longer focus only on illegal traders, as people who sustain such activities by purchasing goods from them would also be held accountable under the relevant provisions of the law.

He said the measure was necessary because patronage encourages traders to continue occupying roadsides, medians, walkways, setbacks and other unauthorised public spaces.

• “The Law does not only prohibit illegal street trading. It also makes it an offence to buy goods exposed or offered for sale in prohibited places. From next week, anyone found buying from traders operating on roadsides, medians, walkways, setbacks or other unauthorised spaces will be arrested, alongside the traders, and prosecuted in accordance with the law.”
• Gbadegesin said a person convicted of the offence could be liable to a fine of N90,000, imprisonment for six months, or both.
• “Our objective is to stop the cycle that allows illegal trading and indiscriminate waste disposal to return after enforcement operations. Traders occupy public spaces because people continue to patronise them.”
• He added that buyers must understand that their actions sustain the problem and that they are also accountable under the law.

Gbadegesin said illegal roadside and median markets frequently generate waste that is dumped in drains, on roads and in other public spaces, obstructing drainage channels, worsening traffic conditions and creating risks to public health.

More insight

The Lagos State Government has repeatedly warned traders against operating on walkways and obstructing drainage systems.

The Lagos State Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, said in February 2025 that continued trading on walkways damaged public infrastructure and blocked drainage systems.

• Gbadegesin said LAWMA was simultaneously strengthening waste collection in inner streets and communities surrounding previously cleared dumping hotspots.
• He said identified service gaps would be addressed, while deliberate dumping, redumping and patronage of illegal markets would attract enforcement.
• He urged residents and businesses to patronise recognised markets and use approved waste collection channels.
• The LAWMA boss said personal convenience must not come at the expense of public health, environmental sanitation, road safety and the orderly use of the city’s shared spaces.

LAWMA reaffirmed its commitment to sustained enforcement, stakeholder engagement and improved waste collection services as part of efforts to eliminate open dumping and achieve a cleaner Lagos.

What you should know

The Lagos State Government, in June 2025, cleared illegal street traders from the median of Ojo-Alaba Road in a joint operation by LAGESC and LAWMA, during which three individuals were arrested for obstructing enforcement.

• Wahab said the clearance operation was part of the state’s ongoing campaign to restore environmental order and ensure public safety on Lagos roads.
• He stated that the arrested individuals would be charged in accordance with relevant Lagos State laws.
• The operation involved LAGESC and LAWMA as part of the enforcement effort.
• The clearance targeted illegal street trading on the median of Ojo-Alaba Road.

The latest enforcement measure extends the state’s campaign against illegal trading to buyers, with LAWMA warning that those who patronise unauthorized roadside markets will also face the consequences provided under the law.