Imam Raimi Street, Makoko, Lagos State
Residents
of Imam Raimi Street, Makoko, Lagos State, have protested the alleged
exclusion of their street from the current rehabilitation of 14 streets
in Makoko.
The rehabilitation work, which is a
World Bank project, is expected to end by September. The Lagos
Metropolitan Development Governance Project is in charge of executing
the project.
When our correspondent visited the area,
she noted that work had stated on other streets, while Imam Raimi in
contrast, was covered with weeds and swamp.
Construction workers were observed at a neighbouring street, Adams Manuel, laying interlocking paving stones on the road.
However, at Raimi Imam, the scenario was
different. A major portion of the street, said to be the longest in
Makoko, had been overtaken by weeds. To create a passageway for
pedestrians, a plank contraption was constructed, while the sides were
filled with silt and refuse.
A resident, Mr. Toyin Alabi, told PUNCH Metro that the community had written many letters to the LMDGP to complain about the exclusion.
He said, “To our surprise, since work
started a few months ago, nothing has been said about our street. Before
this project started, whenever it rained, rain water usually drain away
within an hour.
“But since work began on other
neighbouring streets, flood has become a big headache to us here because
water from adjoining streets collect here. Our lives and property are
endangered.”
Another resident, Mr. Seun Alabi, said,
“This street was number eight on the list of streets that were to be
rehabilitated but for some reasons, it had been excluded. We have been
communicating with the LMDGP for over a year since we learned of this
project.”
A meeting with a representative of the
LMDPG and the residents of Imam Raimi was in progress when our
correspondent visited. The representative, who did not identify himself,
declined to speak because he “was not authorised.” However, PUNCH Metro gathered that the residents had been offered a palliative measure.
“We were told that the best the LMDPG
can do for us now is to evacuate all the refuse and silt from the road.
Then they would dig drainage for us.
“We are not too pleased with the solution. So, we intend to continue pressing harder for a proper rehabilitation,” Toyin said.
When PUNCH Metro visited LMDGP
office at Ogba, the spokesperson, Mr. Micheal Ilesanmi, was unavailable.
Subsequent calls and text messages to his cell phone were unanswered.
However, an LMDGP official, who spoke on
the condition of anonymity said, “We have tried to explain to the
residents the reason we cannot begin work on their street.
“This project is being financed by the
World Bank and the financial assistant will terminate at the end of
September. We want to finish the roads we have started. The state
government would fund streets that are yet to be constructed.
“Meanwhile to tackle the menace of flood
on the street, we have assured them that drainages channels would be
constructed. The channels would be set in concrete to ensure that they
last longer. Nobody is trying to sideline Imam Raimi.”
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