Lagos residents reject 33% waste collection fee hike, say service was poor

Residents of Ajao Estate in Lagos are refusing to pay a new waste collection tariff that raises monthly charges by 33 per cent without prior notice. Flat occupants now face N8,000 per month, up from N6,000, while the estate chairman says the company failed to collect refuse regularly even before the increase.

Estate chairman Olu Isijola spoke for residents on Thursday, July 30, saying the higher fees were announced through notices pasted on doors across the estate. Many households were caught off guard.

Residents reject fee hike after months of poor service

Isijola said the company delivered inconsistent service for between four and five months before announcing the increase. He said residents kept paying the old fee even though collections were irregular.

"We just saw an unexpected notice placed on our doors announcing an increment in the monthly refuse collection fee," Isijola said.

He added: "This company has been neglecting us for over four or five months. Sometimes they won't come for a whole week or even two weeks. When they eventually come, they give excuses that they have problems somewhere. They were not collecting our refuse regularly, yet we still paid them. Now we are saying no."

Beyond flats, the revised charges set monthly fees for wing duplexes at N9,000, standard duplexes at N10,000 and mini flats at N5,500. Residents argue that any fee review should follow service improvements, not precede them, and that the company cannot pass its operational burdens on to paying customers.

Company blames diesel costs and closed disposal sites

In a notice titled 'Marginal Tariff Review', the waste management company apologised for recent service disruptions and explained the fee increase. It said the previous tariff was set in March 2024, when diesel cost roughly N800 per litre. Diesel has since climbed to between N1,700 and N2,000 per litre, more than doubling operating costs.

The company also said the closure of disposal sites close to Ajao Estate had forced its trucks to travel as far as Ikorodu and Badagry, pushing up fuel, maintenance and labour expenses. While repairs to government disposal facilities remain pending, collections will now take place once every two weeks. The firm asked residents to be patient, calling the tariff adjustment essential to keeping its operations running.

Lagos government admits waste management lapses

The Lagos State government has acknowledged lapses in waste evacuation across major parts of the state. Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, admitted that waste management had faced serious difficulties in recent months, after residents complained about heaps of refuse on roads and drainage channels. Wahab said the government recognised the problem and was already taking steps to address it.

The standoff highlights how rising fuel prices are passing into everyday household costs in Lagos. With residents refusing to pay and the company insisting the increase is necessary, waste collection across Ajao Estate remains uncertain even as the government moves to fix broader sanitation failures.