…Telecom Firm to Maintain Macgregor Canal as State Inspects Drainage Projects at Elegbata and System
… As Tokunbo Wahab Leads Lagos Govt Team To Inspect Drainage Project At Elegbata And System 1
Babajide Fadoju
The Lagos State Government has formally handed over Obalende Park to MTN Nigeria for redevelopment and beautification as part of efforts to transform public spaces and improve environmental sustainability. Speaking with journalists after the handover on Wednesday, the Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, described the project as pivotal to the state’s environmental renewal agenda.
According to HC Tokunbo Wahab, the ministry is working to ensure that unused public spaces across the state are transformed into functional and valuable assets. He explained that MTN Nigeria, through its Corporate Social Responsibility initiative, has adopted the park and will redesign it into a modern facility, while also maintaining the Macgregor Canal during and after the redevelopment.
“We are here today to formally hand over the space. The essence is to clean, make it conducive and transform it into an environmentally sustainable space,” Wahab said. He added that the state government and MTN had engaged transport unions operating within the park, assuring them that they would not be displaced during and after the project.
The commissioner disclosed that the redesigned park would feature an organised motor garage, 60 public toilets, sleeping bays, and electric vehicle charging points. He added that the project is expected to be completed within 21 weeks. Wahab noted that the redevelopment would improve safety and eliminate criminal activities in the area, while making the space more attractive and functional.
Following the handover, the commissioner also inspected ongoing drainage cleaning at George Street, Elegbata after flooding was recorded in the Apongbon axis. He explained that recent heavy rainfall caused flooding due to ongoing construction activities, prompting the government to clean the drainage channels to allow free flow of water into the lagoon.
“Few weeks ago, there was heavy rainfall and we noticed that Apongbon was flooded due to ongoing construction causing unintended consequences in the area. We have moved in to clean the drainages and allow free flow of water into the lagoon,” Wahab said.
The team also inspected the ongoing channelisation of System 1 Odo Iya Alaro following complaints of flooding from residents of Soluyi Gbagada. Wahab explained that System 1, established in 1974, remains the largest primary drainage channel deflooding major parts of mainland Lagos, including Ogudu, Mende, Ojota, Ifako, Gbagada, and Maryland.
He stressed that encroachment along the drainage channel had narrowed the waterway, making it necessary for government to reopen and expand it. Wahab further explained that the drainage alignment connects multiple channels, including those behind Sheraton Hotel Lagos and opposite the hotel, all converging at the Maryland underbridge to aid flood control.
The commissioner was accompanied by the Special Adviser on Environment, Olakunle Rotimi-Akodu; Permanent Secretaries Gaji Omobolaji and Mahamood Adegbite; General Manager of Lagos State Parks and Gardens Agency, Toun Popoola; Managing Director of Lagos Waste Management Authority, Muyiwa Gbadegesin; and other officials from the ministry and its agencies.
