Gov Abiodun Sacks OGWAMA Boss After Vendors’ Angry Protests, Appoints Farook Akintunde to Restore Sanity

The era of “hardship and high-handedness” at the Ogun State Waste Management Authority (OGWAMA) has come to an abrupt end. On Friday evening, Governor Dapo Abiodun swung the executive axe, relieving Mr. Abayomi Hunye of his duties as the agency’s Managing Director following weeks of boiling tension and public outcry from industry stakeholders.

In a move intended to de-escalate a growing crisis, the Governor announced the immediate appointment of Mr. Farook Akintunde as the new man to lead the state’s environmental cleaning efforts. The shake-up follows a series of “Hunye Must Go” protests at the State Secretariat, where waste and scrap vendors accused the former boss of turning the agency into a “personal fiefdom” of extortion and arbitrary levies.

The protesters, some of whom have been in the recycling business for over 40 years, alleged that Hunye doubled licensing fees and introduced “compulsory” workshops with steep price tags, all while allegedly edging out local operators in favor of “political outsiders.” One vendor at the January protests lamented, “We have never experienced this level of wickedness from someone appointed to manage us.”

While Hunye had fought back, claiming he was simply a victim of his own integrity for “refusing to compromise standards,” the Governor’s decision signals a desire for a fresh start. New Managing Director Farook Akintunde is no stranger to the trenches, with half a decade of experience in the environment sector.

Congratulating the new appointee, the Commissioner for Environment, Ola Oresanya, assured Akintunde of the ministry’s full backing. The mandate for the new “Waste General” is clear: clear the streets of trash and the agency of controversy. As Akintunde takes over the reins at OGWAMA, the people of the “Gateway State” are watching to see if this change of guard will finally bring the “State of Harmony” promised for Ogun’s environmental sector.