28th November, 2019
Lagos State Government on Thursday gave marching orders to all street traders, squatters and occupiers of shanties and commercial vehicles presently on the stretch of Outer Marina up till the frontage of the State House, Marina from the foot of Apongbon Bridge to immediately vacate the area or get arrested and prosecuted.
The State Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Mr Tunji Bello in a statement said from next week, the State Government, through the Lagos State Parks and Garden Agency would commence work on the beautification and landscaping of the whole stretch of Outer Marina and that it had become expedient to clear the area.
He added that operatives of the State Task Force of Environmental and Special Offences would move to the area and commence enforcement of the state laws on all offenders, including commercial vehicles that stopped and picked passengers indiscriminately in Marina from next week.
He urged all commercial vehicle operators in Marina to henceforth move their vehicles to the designated Park in Marina as all vehicles seen picking, dropping passengers and all those stopping at the foot of the bridge along the road in Marina thereby causing traffic snarl would be towed away and the owners prosecuted.
Bello also warned all pedestrians in the habit of dashing across the road and not climbing the provided overhead bridge that officials of the State Environmental Sanitation Corps (LAGESC) would be deployed to the location to arrest anyone who endangered his life by trying to cross the road.
He emphasized that the State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu intended to restore the greenery and beautified nature of the whole stretch of Marina, just as he intended to do to all parts of the state.
In his words: “The State Task Force on Environmental and Special Offences will soon be moving to Ikoyi and Victoria Island to clean up the area in terms of environmental nuisances.”
He restated his warning to street traders in all different parts of the state that no area would be left out of enforcement by the present administration, reminding them that Oyingbo had just been cleared of street traders and man-made traffic bottlenecks and that it would be sustained.