Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has ordered the demolition of all shanties and illegal structures along the median of the Lagos-Badagry Expressway, giving occupants 72 hours to vacate the area ahead of a major enforcement exercise.
The governor announced the directive on Saturday after leading the monthly environmental sanitation exercise alongside his wife, Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, across communities in Surulere Local Government Area.
Speaking to journalists after the exercise, Sanwo-Olu said enforcement teams would begin clearing the corridor next week, targeting the stretch from Orile-Iganmu to Okokomaiko.
“This is the final notice to everyone occupying the median of the Lagos-Badagry Expressway. From next week, we are coming to clear the entire median. Everything there will go. Every illegal structure will be removed,” he said.
According to the governor, the highway median was never intended for commercial activities or informal settlements, stressing that the state would not allow public infrastructure to be encroached upon.
“It is not meant to be a market. It is not meant to be a place where people erect structures. It is a highway median, and we must preserve it, especially considering the huge public investment on that corridor,” he added.
Sanwo-Olu noted that the 10-lane expressway, built with taxpayers’ funds, serves as a major gateway into Lagos and must be protected from illegal occupation.
“I will not fold my arms and allow them to turn that international gateway into a slum. This is a notice that I am giving officially to everybody on that corridor. We are starting next week, and we are going to deploy thousands of men there,” he said.
The governor’s directive comes days after the Lagos State Task Force issued a similar 72-hour ultimatum to street traders and illegal occupants along the Alaba Rago section of the Mile 2-Badagry Expressway.
The agency said the planned enforcement, to be carried out in collaboration with other security agencies, is part of the state’s ongoing campaign against street trading and illegal structures in line with the Lagos State Environmental Management and Protection Law.
According to the taskforce, the Alaba Rago corridor has become a major source of concern due to worsening environmental degradation, traffic obstruction, safety risks and security challenges affecting motorists, pedestrians, residents and visitors entering Nigeria through the Seme border.
(The Whistler)