Lagos gives traders, mechanics under Marine Bridge 48-hour ultimatum to vacate

This is part of the clean-up exercise of Apapa and its environment being embarked on by the Lagos State Government in collaboration with the men of the Nigerian Navy under the Western Naval Command.

This was made known by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Environment, Engr. Kunle Rotimi-Akodu, during a chat with journalists after the exercise, which extended to Mobil road and Marine Beach on Saturday, May 24, 2025.

Rotimi-Akodu said the quest to clean up Apapa and its environment is a beautiful marriage between Lagos State and the Navy authorities, adding that it is an initiative that would make a meaningful impact in the affected areas by improving the well-being of the residents.

The Special Adviser said the team had gone round some places in the area, such as the motor parks, mechanic workshops and observed that there are a lot of environmental infractions in the area that the State and Navy are determined to restore sanity to.

He said the motor boys who sleep in the trucks in motor parks, traders on the roads and mechanics around are responsible for messing up the area, stressing that the partnership is a positive development that would be sustained.

Rotimi-Akodu said the team also addressed some of the motor boys, their drivers, traders and mechanics to enlighten them on the importance of the exercise, informing that operators of the mechanic workshops under the Marine Beach Bridge were given 48 48-hour ultimatum to vacate the area.

He noted that the state government does not permit motor boys to sleep in the parks or traders selling alcohol on the roads/parks, and shanties because they run afoul of the provisions of the State Environmental Sanitation laws.

He said the clean-up exercise would continue and get to all parts of the State, calling on stakeholders to collaborate with the government, maintaining that the collaboration is essential as government efforts alone can not suffice for ensuring a sustainable environment.

Also speaking, the Flag Officer Commanding, Western Naval Command, Rear Admiral Michael Oamen said the exercise is in line with what the military authorities call civil military engagement, as such, the military is part and parcel of this initiative.

Places visited/cleaned up during the exercise, which started on Friday, included Mobil Road, Marine Beach Under Bridge and environs where shanties were pulled down and carted away with LAWMA trucks.