6th April, 2018
A splinter group among the PSP operators has rejected the resolutions reached between Visionscape and majority of their counterparts.
The group, Waste Managers Association of Nigeria (WMAN) said to consist of only 30 among the more than 300 operators in Lagos has also rejected the N2.5 billion loan offered by the Lagos State Government for the PSP participants to scale up their operations.
It was, however, learnt that 300 PSP operators who are now known as Waste Collection Operators, WCOs are already working with Visionscape while many others have indicated interest to sign the agreement reached by the stakeholders.
After several meetings of stakeholders in the waste management sector moderated by the Lagos State government, the parties agreed that Visionscape would yield the collection of waste in residential areas to the WCOs. Part of the agreement is that Visionscape would focus on developing the infrastructure needed to facilitate an effective integrated waste management system.
The CEO of Visionscape Sanitation Solutions, Mr. John Irvine, speaking on the development had noted that the new terms gave the environmental utility company “the opportunity to focus on, and construct, infrastructure that is vital to the success of any waste management reform.”
A representative of the PSPs, Hafis Kasumu had also said: “We have decided to support the government in the initiative to get rid of the waste. And also, to partner with Visionscape. ”
But the splinter group of waste collectors in a statement signed by one Alhaji Ola Egbeyemi, insisted that “there is no such thing as settlement . ”
“They are insisting that we keep to commercial waste collection while Visionscape solely carries on with domestic waste collection and disposal. So, what is the settlement there? That has remained the bone of contention between us and we are telling them that it cannot work out as it will amount to taking away 80 percent of our jobs and if that happens, we will not only run out of business, all of our employees, running into about 25, 000 direct and indirect jobs will be thrown into the unemployment market,” says Egbeyemi.
The members of the Egbeyemi group maintained that they were not satisfied with the one-year- contract offered to them by Visionscape as they feared that the company would dump them after its expiration.
They therefore want the government and Visionscape to yield to their own terms.