A video allegedly showing a Lagos state agent destroying a pick-up load of sachet water has been circulating on social media.
On November 30, an X user @Pep_Boxx posted the video on the microblogging platform, showing a man in a blue vest and tan joggers wielding a knife-like object and using it to puncture sachet water inside a pickup van.
The caption on the 49 seconds video reads: Bags of sachet water destroyed in Lagos state. Recall that the Lagos State Government had clarified back in October that the ban on single-use plastics and Styrofoam, which is set to take effect from January 2025, will not include sachet water and PET bottles.
Since then, the video has generated over 986,000 views, 165 replies, 221 reposts and quotes, 224 likes and 149 bookmarks. The same video was also shared here, here and here, and on Facebook, here.
This video is circulating about a month after the Lagos State government announced that it is set to begin enforcement of the ban on Single-Use Plastics (SUP).
VERIFICATION
In October 2024, the Lagos State Government announced that it will commence statewide full enforcement of a ban on certain categories of Single-Use Plastics (SUP) from January 2025, following the expiration of the one-year moratorium it gave to the producers. It was also clarified that pet bottles, sachets and carrier bags that are not less than 40 microns will be managed using the mandatory Extended Producer Responsibility.
A micron is a unit of measurement equal to one-millionth of a meter, where 1 μm = 0.000001 meters. The Extended Producer Responsibility” aims at controlling the production, use, and disposal of plastic items, particularly thin plastic materials like bags or packaging, with 40 microns specifying the thickness of the plastic material.
NV-A extracted screenshots from the clip and subjected it to Google Reverse Image search and the result showed that the clip was posted recently. However, the Lagos State Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Hon. Tokunbo Wahab (@tokunbo_wahab) had quoted the post by @Pep_Boxx stating that the individual was not a member of the Lagos state task force.
His quote post reads: “My attention has been drawn to a viral video showing some individuals bursting sachet water packs at factories and on buses. I wish to categorically state that these individuals are not enforcement officers from any Lagos State Government agency or the Lagos State Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources.”
“Upon investigation, it was confirmed that the individuals in question are enforcement officers from the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC). Their actions are part of an enforcement exercise targeting sachet water that does not comply with NAFDAC regulations, and in the interest of public health and safety.”
Replying to Wahab’s assertion that the alleged agent is from NAFDAC, the federal agency also quoted his post clarifying that the individual in the video is not a member of their agency. NAFDAC posted saying: “The videos circulating of individuals engaging in enforcement activities are NOT NAFDAC officials or part of our Investigation & Enforcement team.”
NV-A went on to do an image analysis of the alleged agent using PIM EYES but results were not definite because only a partial side of his face was visible in the footage. The fact-checker also reached out to the X user who posted the video for further deliberation to ascertain the location where the incident happened but he did not respond to messages sent to him via direct message.
CONCLUSION
The circulating video and accompanying claim that the enforcement agent is a Lagos state employee is MISLEADING as the Lagos state commissioner for environment has stated that the man in the video does not work for the state. Also, NAFDAC has denied the individual’s association with the regulatory agency.
