Some former employees of the Osun State Waste Management Agency (OWMA) who were assigned to the Egbedi dumpsite have allegedly resorted to armed robbery following their dismissal, investigations by OSUN DEFENDER have revealed.
The affected workers were reportedly disengaged by Bolarin Merchant, a consultant appointed by the administration of Governor Ademola Adeleke to oversee operations at the dumpsite. Sources say around 30 individuals were removed from the site after the change in government in 2022.
According to reports from within the dumpsite community, some of the sacked workers were among the suspects involved in a foiled robbery at the Dangote Integrated Steel Rolling Mills in Osogbo in January 2024. Three of the suspects were killed during a shootout with operatives of the Amotekun Corps, while five others were apprehended.
Amotekun officials said their anti-cultism squad responded to a 3:00 a.m. distress call from the company’s Chief Security Officer, who reported an invasion by armed robbers. The squad, in collaboration with the police, confronted the suspects and made arrests.
The arrested individuals were identified as Adepoju Abdullateef (18), Rasheed Hammed (20), Liadi Afeez (20), Wasiu Sodiq (21), and Rabiu Lekan (29). Items recovered included a single-barreled gun with four expended shells, knives, electric cable cutters, and an Itel phone. The three deceased suspects were taken to the Osun State University Teaching Hospital, while the five injured suspects are receiving medical treatment.
A source familiar with the matter called on the state government to urgently revive operations at the dumpsite and reinstate the former workers to prevent further descent into crime and poverty.
“Before the PDP took over, the dumpsite was managed by FENOLAD under the APC government. Things ran smoothly, and all scavengers and buyers were retained. But since the new consultant took over, outsiders have been barred, and many locals have lost their livelihoods,” the source said.
He further alleged that the consultant initially promised to remit ₦3 million monthly to the state but later reduced it to ₦1 million, claiming financial shortfalls. “We heard they’re not remitting anything at all and that the consultant is claiming political backing from the Secretary to the State Government, Alhaji Teslim Igbalaye.”
The source lamented the deaths of the three former workers and said others are living in destitution. “They had no other means of survival and turned to crime. We appeal to the government to reinstate them at the dumpsite. The consultant said he disengaged everyone to meet the revenue target, but he’s the one benefiting from the scavenged materials.”
