Lagos Taskforce continues clamp on street traders, squatters

The Lagos State Taskforce says it revisited Lekki Coastal Road to clear illegal occupants and will continue to return to locations it had dislodged squatters across the state to prevent miscreants from regrouping.

This is contained in a statement on Tuesday by Gbadeyan Abdulraheem, Director, Press and Public Affairs,
Lagos State Taskforce.

Abdulraheem said Chairman of the agency, CSP Shola Jejeloye led the operation at Lekki Coastal Road where he directed strict and simultaneous monitoring for compliance of other locations cleared in the past.

Jejeloye said locations which had been visited for enforcement in the past weeks would not just be left unattended but would be closely monitored for compliance and use by the state government.

He said that the planned actions were necessary to discourage miscreants from regrouping at those locations after the clearing exercise.

He added that total conclusion of a particular task was more important than two inconclusive tasks.

“As a police officer, it is my duty to carry out enforcement exercises in areas marked for violating the environmental laws of the state in line with THEMES agenda of the present administration.

“Therefore, it is imperative that right after the clearing exercise, monitoring follows to prevent a reoccurrence of the anomalies we corrected,” he said.

Jejeloye said further that locations like Marwa Road, Lekki, Agege and Oshodi were key areas the agency was monitoring closely to ensure that the succor being enjoyed by residents was not short lived.

“Residents in areas like Lekki Coastal Road and Marwa Garden have sent series of appreciation texts to the agency since the clearing of shanties where criminal elements use as hideout to perpetrate various crimes around the area.

“The degradation of the environment affected the value of property and real estate which in turn, affects the economy but we have come to put a permanent stop to it,” he said.

Jejeloye added that the agency was getting ready for massive cleaning of Fagba down to Pen Cinema and Iso-koko where shanties and makeshift buildings had become a nuisance to residents.

He promised to carry out a thorough enforcement along the large expanse of land that would subsequently be closely monitored like other sites.

In another development, the agency carried out enforcement for compliance along Airport Bus Stop, Ikeja-Along, PWD Railtrack and Shogunle where pedestrian walkways, medians and kerbs had been completely taken over by street traders.

The chairman decried the manner in which traders defied the laws of the state government on street trading despite the punishment attached.

He appealed to individuals or groups in the habit of obstructing human traffic by displaying wares on such locations to desist forthwith or risk arrest and prosecution by the appropriate court.

He advised Lagos residents to continually use feedback channels provided by the agency to report activities against the environmental laws of the state.

He promised to keep putting in every effort possible to ensure that the safety and serenity being enjoyed by residents is not compromised by anyone.