Assault claims trail Ogun’s crackdown on Chinese firms over environmental violations

The Ogun State government has moved against five Chinese owned companies in the Ogere axis of the Lagos-Ibadan expressway, sealing them for alleged environmental offences amid accusations that the firms physically attacked state officials.

The companies DL Plastics Limited, Dyschenghan Plastics, SH Agricultural Limited, Beautiful Fibre Limited, and Jincaicai Nigeria Limited, were accused of serial violations, including improper waste disposal, indiscriminate burning of refuse, and refusal to work with government accredited waste collectors.

Abayomi Hunye, Special Adviser to the Governor on Environment and Managing Director of the Ogun State Waste Management Authority (OGWAMA), disclosed that the government had pursued the matter for months. “We have been on this case for the past six months. Despite several letters, visits, and even notices of intention to seal, they refused to comply. Last week, when we locked their gates, they broke government seals and chains,” he said.

According to Hunye, what began as routine enforcement spiralled into violence when officials, accompanied by security operatives, returned to reinforce the seal order. Workers from the affected companies allegedly launched a mob attack, inflicting bodily harm on state officers, some of whom were hospitalized.

The confrontation has now raised wider questions about corporate accountability, particularly the willingness of foreign-owned firms to undermine local laws. Hunye did not mince words in his condemnation. “When our officials returned with security operatives, their workers launched a mob attack, leaving our people injured,” he recounted.

Beyond the environmental infractions, the alleged assault underscores a troubling clash between industrial interests and state authority. Hunye described the companies as “both an environmental nuisance and a threat,” stressing that Ogun State would not tolerate businesses hiding under the banner of foreign investment to defy the law.

“Any of them caught in such acts will be prosecuted under the laws of the land,” he warned, signaling a potential legal battle that may test the state’s ability to hold foreign owned industries accountable.

Environmental activists say the episode highlights a larger pattern: factories setting up along Ogun’s industrial corridors often leave communities grappling with pollution, while enforcement is resisted with impunity. The sealing of these five firms may therefore represent more than just a regulatory exercise but it could be a turning point in how far the state is willing to go in defending its environment and authority.