Lagos State Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, on Saturday declared that government will not be selective in the application of laws to residents, ensuring justice and equity for all.
He said this after visiting the Lekki II-Ikota drainage corridor along with other state officials. There, structures built over drainage channels are being demolished for on-site assessment.
Besieged by pleading occupiers and owners of completed buildings built over drainage ditch setbacks and already marked for demolition, Wahab said halting demolition efforts at this point would be a double standard. said to be equivalent to.
He said the demolished duplex blocks are in the same drainage setback location as the blocks that have not yet been demolished, and the state is irrevocably committed to reclaiming the drainage setbacks and restoring the master plan. he added.
He explained that it was sad that the state government had to take the very difficult decision to demolish the completed structure in order to backfill the drain to allow rainwater to flow freely in the area. .
He said the owners of demolished structures in Ikota were aware of the violations and had engaged differently with the ministry since 2020, when most of the structures were at foundation level and several notices were served. He emphasized that he had come.
“In Ikota, the level of encroachment is unimaginable, people are building on the canal path and we are determined that we cannot allow these nuisances to continue. It just has to stop. “It didn’t happen,” he said.
Mr. Wahab visited the Ikota site once again and met directly with the owners of the buildings that have not yet been demolished, advising them to vacate their buildings before the demolition is completed, as no amount of begging can stop the construction work. He said it was his duty to do so. exercise.
“We went around and came to the conclusion that all the houses along the canal and on the canal itself need to be removed and the path to the Ikota River needs to be rebuilt,” he said. .
All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed in whole or in part without the prior express written permission of PUNCH.
Contact: theeditor@punchng.com