Following a day of devastating floods that wreaked havoc on the Lagos-Badagry Expressway, a Special Intervention Team, established under the guidance of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, swung into action on Sunday to address the issue.
The torrential rainfall had triggered flooding in numerous areas across Lagos, including sections of the vital expressway, causing significant distress to commuters, motorists, and residents.
This intervention team, comprising officials from the Ministries of Works and Infrastructure, Transportation, alongside the Police, Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), and other relevant agencies, initiated the clearance of shanties. ACP Bayo Sulaiman, the Area Commander responsible for Area F in Ikeja, led the operation, and he emphasised the importance of safety in their work.
“The governor’s THEMES+ agenda prominently features traffic and transportation as its primary pillars, showcasing a dedicated commitment to infrastructure development, including road and railway networks,” explained Mr. Olasunkanmi Ojo-Owuro, the Director of Operations in the Ministry of Transportation, during a briefing with journalists.
Ojo-Owuro also elaborated on the substantial investments made by the government in transport infrastructure on the Lagos-Badagry Expressway, including projects like the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and the Blue Rail lines. “Regrettably, these assets were facing vandalism,” he noted.
Approximately five months ago, Governor Sanwo-Olu established the special intervention committee with the primary objective of restoring order. Ojo-Owuro clarified, “Shanties had sprung up in unauthorized areas, encroaching upon medians, setbacks, walkways, under bridges, and beneath train stations.”
“Phase one of the committee’s assignment was clearance of shanties and miscreants while phase two would be sustainable monitoring for sustainability,” Ojo-Owuro stated, outlining the committee’s comprehensive approach.
He expressed deep concerns about the negative impact of miscreants, criminals, and squatters on vital infrastructure, which had severely deteriorated the corridor. “It has put this corridor in a very deplorable state,” he said.
Ojo-Owuro appealed to residents, urging them to have faith in the government’s ongoing transportation and infrastructure initiatives to ensure the sustainability of the city. “The evacuation of illegal shanties along the Lagos-Badagry Expressway aims to rectify infrastructure abuse and mitigate the severe degradation witnessed in the area,” he emphasised.
