Govt Cracks Down On Illegal Trading, Issues 48-Hour Ultimatum To Lagos Bridge Occupants

The Lagos State Government has given a 48-hour ultimatum to traders operating under the Apongbon Bridge and along drainage setbacks in Lagos Island to vacate the areas.

The Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, gave the directive during an inspection of the Savage/Elegbata/Bombata Drainage Channel on Thursday.

The directive is part of the state’s urban regeneration initiative aimed at improving infrastructure and tackling environmental challenges.

Speaking via a statement made available to Naijaonpoint, Wahab highlighted the impact of human activities in the area, including flooding and threats to lives and property.

“I have instructed that the shop/stall owners be served abatement notice. We are going to clear these infractions and keep the maintenance work going while ensuring that the contract is revisited to accommodate these two collectors,” he said.

The commissioner noted the illegal conversion of spaces under the Apongbon Bridge into livestock markets and ordered the immediate relocation of traders to designated areas.

He said, “What we saw is not something that we are happy about. People have fully built on setback and drainage channels and when you build structures on these infrastructure, how do you expect these infrastructure to be maintained?

“We have abused these infrastructure and I have given directives to the appropriate department to serve notice of abatement and if compliance is not carried out enforcement will commence.”

Wahab warned that the state would enforce environmental laws if compliance is not achieved.

He emphasised that all affected traders would be monitored after the 48-hour deadline, with violators facing penalties.