Akinyemi LAWMA appointment signals a major leadership shake-up as Sanwo-Olu redeploys senior officers amid Lagos’ worsening waste crisis
LAGOS, November 11, 2026: Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has appointed Olajuwon Mautin Akinyemi as the acting Managing Director of the Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA), replacing Dr Muyiwa Gbadegesin, as the state government moves to restructure the agency amid persistent refuse accumulation across the metropolis.
The appointment, which takes immediate effect, forms part of a broader administrative shake-up involving the redeployment of senior officers and changes to the authority’s operational leadership.
Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotosho, confirmed Akinyemi’s appointment to TheCable on Wednesday.
As part of the restructuring, Governor Sanwo-Olu has also appointed Dr Tijani Olorunwa as acting Director of Operations, while Kunle Adebiyi retains his position as Executive Director of Finance.
The changes extend beyond the authority’s top management. Officers on Salary Grade Levels 13 to 17 are expected to be redeployed to the mainstream Lagos State Civil Service, local governments and Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs).
However, personnel in LAWMA’s Legal Department have been excluded from the exercise to prevent disruptions to ongoing court proceedings and existing concession agreements.
The heads of Landfill Operations, LAWMA Operations and Private Sector Participation Operations have also been granted an initial 90-day exemption from the redeployment.
The arrangement is intended to give the incoming management time to stabilise the agency while maintaining continuity in essential waste management services.
The Lagos State Government’s decision comes against the backdrop of growing public dissatisfaction with waste collection and disposal across the state.
Gbadegesin’s departure follows reports that Sanwo-Olu had asked the former managing director to resign after expressing dissatisfaction with the pace of refuse evacuation and the agency’s response to government directives.
The governor’s concerns reportedly intensified following an inspection of the Olusosun dumpsite in Ojota, where the state government’s intervention efforts were said to have fallen short of expectations.
The development formed part of a wider waste management challenge that has affected several communities, with refuse accumulating along major roads, residential streets, road medians and drainage channels.
Reports have highlighted complaints from residents in areas including Mushin, Ikeja, Egbeda, Surulere, Ajegunle, Ikorodu, Ojo, Apapa, Obalende and Mile 2.
The situation has also raised concerns about public health, environmental sanitation and the potential obstruction of drainage channels, particularly during periods of heavy rainfall.
Lagos generates approximately 14,000 tonnes of municipal solid waste daily, placing considerable pressure on the state’s collection, transportation and disposal infrastructure.
LAWMA plays a central role in coordinating the state’s waste management operations, including the activities of private sector participants responsible for collecting refuse from households and commercial establishments.
Sanwo-Olu had previously expressed concerns about the performance of private waste collection operators, alongside operational challenges involving landfill capacity, waste evacuation and fire incidents at dumpsites.
Following an inspection of Olusosun, the governor reportedly called for urgent improvements and a more effective approach to managing the state’s growing waste burden.
Akinyemi’s appointment therefore places significant responsibility on the incoming leadership to address the operational difficulties that have continued to affect residents and businesses.
The new acting managing director is an experienced public administrator with a background in the Lagos State public service.
Reports indicate that Akinyemi previously served as Director of Administration and Human Resources in the state’s Office of Infrastructure and later held a technical leadership position connected with the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC).
He was also appointed Deputy Executive Secretary (Technical) of UBEC by President Bola Tinubu in 2025, according to reports on his professional background.
Confirming the immediate commencement of the new appointment, Omotosho told TheCable: “Yes, Olajuwon Akinyemi has been told to assume office as the acting MD of LAWMA with immediate effect in the major shake-up of the agency.”
An insider quoted by PUNCH also described the reorganisation as an effort to improve the authority’s performance, saying the governor had ordered a “total reorganisation, mass transfer and overhauling of LAWMA leadership”.
Although the redeployment is intended to reshape the authority’s administrative structure, the decision to temporarily retain key operational department heads suggests that the government is also seeking to avoid interruptions to essential services during the transition.
The 90-day exemption for the landfill, operations and private sector participation departments will be particularly important as the new management works to establish control over waste collection and disposal activities.
However, the restructuring alone may not resolve the underlying challenges. Effective waste management in Lagos also depends on the availability of collection vehicles, reliable evacuation schedules, functional landfill facilities, effective supervision of private operators and cooperation from residents.
The government has yet to publicly announce specific performance targets or a timeline for clearing the accumulated refuse under the new leadership.
For Akinyemi, the immediate task will be to translate the administrative changes into visible improvements across Lagos communities, particularly neighbourhoods that have experienced prolonged delays in refuse collection.
The latest Akinyemi LAWMA appointment marks a significant change in the leadership of one of Lagos State’s key environmental agencies.
Its eventual impact will likely be measured not simply by the scale of the restructuring, but by whether residents begin to see cleaner streets, more reliable waste collection and improved environmental conditions.
