Drivers and sellers are worried about the unlawful dumping of trash into a drainage canal across from Adebola Idowu Street in the Kosofe Local Government Area of Lagos.
Our reporter, who went to the area on Thursday, saw that the canal was blocked with rubbish, mostly made of disposable Styrofoam and plastics.
Also, it was noticed that the water supposed to flow through the canal spills onto the road, causing damage and slowing down traffic.
A trader named Maria Yusuf said, PUNCH Metro that, “I see people come in the evening and just throw their trash into the canal because I go home late. When it gets too much, we gather and sometimes clean it up.
“When it rains, the water can't flow and everywhere gets flooded. We have to use sawdust in cement bags on the road to guide us, and even the main road gets flooded and water didn't gather like that before.”
A bus driver named Segun Akanbi also pointed out that the damage to the road was caused by the overflowing canal onto the road.
“The road wasn't bad like this before. It's when the canal started getting blocked after rain that water gathered on the road. If you notice, it's like the road is sinking at that part.”
A resident named Poopola David told our reporter that even food sellers and traders around the area were partly to blame for the indiscriminate waste disposal in the canal. He said, “These traders don't have waste bins or manage their waste properly. They casually throw it into the canal. All of us are guilty, not just those who throw a lot of trash.”
David also urged the government to ensure there are consequences for anyone caught, to discourage others. He said if the government could enforce punishment, like fines or jail, people would learn and stop dumping waste there.
Efforts to contact the Director of Public Affairs, Lagos Waste Management Authority, Sade Kadiri, by phone and text were unsuccessful at the time of filing this report.
PUNCH Metro stated on Tuesday that officials from the Lagos State Ministry of Environment and Water Resources had started demolishing buildings erected on drainage systems in the Ojota and Ogudu areas of the state.
The ministry’s Director of Public Affairs, Kunle Adeshina, said in a statement on Monday that the demolition occurred after property owners were given notice to remove the illegal structures.
