By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Programme Coordinator for Media and Policy at the Social and Economic Justice Advocacy (SEJA), Mr Jerome-Mario Utomi, has challenged the Lagos State government to lead the movement against environmental injustice.
Mr Utomi, while speaking on Tuesday as a panellist at the Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS), Erasmus University, Rotterdam, the Netherlands, also advised the government to stop being the coach and captain during environmental conversations.
At the panel discussion themed “The role of multi-stakeholder engagement in achieving environmental justice, he noted engagement and collaboration have been overused by those in the position of authority without commensurate achievement.
Mr Utomi insisted that public office must imbibe the virtue of humility and seek assistance and expert knowledge when necessary to solve the nation’s environmental nagging challenges.
He praised the Lagos State government’s appreciable efforts in promoting environmental justice in the state but stressed that more should be done by stamping out all forms of environmental injustice in the state, noting that SEJA was formed to help bring out challenging issues to where they can be seen and treated.
The top class discussion, which had participants drawn from the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA), the Lagos State Waste Management Agency (LAWMA), members of Civil Society Groups and community leaders among others, was held in Lagos.
Adedapo Adesanya