No nation can prosper in degraded environment-Adejare

Babatunde Adejare, Commissioner for the Environment

Lagos State Commissioner for the Environment, Dr. Babatunde Adejare has emphasised the importance of the environment, saying no nation can prosper in a distressed and degraded environment.

He stated this during the launch of Ikeja Clean-up Exercise and purpose-built tricycles for waste disposal by Ikeja Local Government, Lagos, Southwest Nigeria on Thursday in furtherance of the policy of the state government to rid the environment of all infractions and nuisances.

Adejare commended the efforts of the Administrator of Ikeja Local Government, Engr. Abiodun Taiwo, for subscribing to the vision of the administration of Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode on the environment and urged other Administrators to emulate this feat.

He said that the achievement of functional and sustainable environment was everybody’s business. According to him, “when we put environment first, development endures because we cannot lay claim to economic prosperity in the face of environmental insecurities.”

He further urged the citizens to take good care of the environment “because God never created the environment to be distressed or degraded; it is human efforts that have put it in the current worrisome state.”

While restating the position of government on sustainable environment, Adejare said that the Lagos State Government was also planning to invest in the use of tricycle for waste disposal, saying such efforts would help in no small measure to assist waste disposal in the State, as the tricycles would be able to navigate hard-to reach areas.

The Commissioner also stated that the government had embarked on Clean Lagos exercise across the five divisions of the State, as the initiative would help reduce environmental degradation.

Adejare urged Lagosians to join the state’s crusade to attain a cleaner, healthier, functional and sustainable environment, capable of promoting economic growth and well-being of the entire citizenry.

“We do not have another planet, this earth is our earth, we must do everything within our capacities to ensure it is safe for us and posterity. We are all products of the environment; we cannot exist without the environment. It is paramount that we give our best to protect it,” Adejare said.