The Lagos State Government says it will immediately remove all illegal structures obstructing canals and drainage channels along the Agungi, Ajiran and Ikota areas, vowing to tackle perennial flooding regardless of the status of those responsible.
Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources Tokunbo Wahab made the declaration after inspecting drainage and flood mitigation projects in Lekki, Agungi, Ikota and Ajiran, prompted by reports of persistent flooding despite drainage works completed more than two years ago.
He said the inspection uncovered a major obstruction at Ajiran, where a land-owning family had blocked the outfall channel that discharges stormwater by gravity into the Lagos Lagoon. He ordered the outlet reopened immediately in the public interest, stressing that without it water could not leave the area.
Wahab said the government respected legitimate land ownership and Certificates of Occupancy but that no one had the right to block natural watercourses or public drainage serving thousands of residents. He warned that blocked channels left residents to bear the cost of flooding despite heavy public investment.
At Megamond Estate in Ikota, he said developers had illegally reclaimed part of the Ikota River and built without environmental and drainage approvals, ignoring earlier enforcement notices, and that illegal structures there would be removed. He urged developers to obtain Environmental Impact Assessments and wetland clearance, and appealed to residents to report infractions.
