Lagos community decries abandoned drainage project, bad roads

Residents of Ifedola Estate, Meiran-Ilewe, in the Alimosho Local Government Area of Lagos State, have decried the prolonged delay in completing an ongoing drainage project in the community.

The residents told PUNCH Metro that the delay had worsened the condition of roads in the area, making movement difficult, particularly during the rainy season.

Our correspondent, who visited the community on Sunday, gathered that construction of the drainage project began more than three years ago but had yet to be completed.

The residents said the prolonged construction had left several roads in the community in a deplorable condition, while heaps of construction materials and excavated portions of the roads had further restricted movement.

A resident, Kenny Bamgbose, said the situation had affected residents, particularly students, who struggled to navigate the area whenever it rained.

He said, “The government needs to hasten this work and ensure it is completed very quickly. It should not be dragged into next year. Students have suffered on this route, especially when it rains. The entire community also suffers because you cannot use your vehicle properly.

“This is a project that started about four years ago. The government needs to properly monitor the contractor and ensure that the project is delivered, not just completed anyhow, but done to a good standard.”

Bamgbose said several roads linking the area, including Shupobare Street, Unity Valley and Tunde Oginni Crescent, also required government attention.

He noted that other government projects were ongoing in the area, including the reconstruction of a secondary school on Baale Street and the construction of a technical college, but urged the government to also fix the affected roads.

He added, “People need to feel the presence of government in this community. I believe the Lagos State Government can do it, but it must ensure that the contractors carry out quality work, considering the safety of lives and property.

“Rain is coming, and we cannot wait. The government needs to hasten the project and deliver it on time.”

Also speaking, the Chairman of Ifedola Meiran Community Development Area, Oluwaseyi Ogunbo, said the drainage project had been ongoing for more than three years despite an initial completion period of 12 months.

Ogunbo said the first contractor had initially made significant progress before the project was reassigned to another contractor.

He said, “When the project started, we were told by the project board that the duration was 12 months. But since then, the project has been dragging.

“The contractor who started it initially was doing a fantastic job. The work was solid, and residents were happy with the progress. But along the line, the project was withdrawn from him and given to another contractor. We had no problem with that, provided the project would be completed.

“But since then, the work has been dragging. They will come, do a little work and disappear. We have to write, call and make several efforts before they return to the site.”

Ogunbo said the current contractor had excavated sections of the roads and left heaps of laterite and sand on them, making movement difficult for motorists.

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He said some roads that previously allowed two vehicles to pass simultaneously had become narrower because of construction materials left on them.

According to him, the community had resorted to carrying out minor backfilling through self-help efforts to ease movement.

Ogunbo added that the first contractor had ensured that sections of the drainage were completed as excavation progressed, including providing access points for residents and motorists.

He said the disruption had also affected schools in the area, noting that some teachers could no longer drive into their school premises because of the condition of the roads.

“The teachers of those schools can’t bring in their cars. They have to park their cars far away instead of bringing them into the school premises,” he said.

During the visit, our correspondent observed that work had slightly resumed at the construction site.

A business owner in the community, Banji Akanni, who confirmed the return of the contractors, however, lamented what he described as a decline in the quality of work.

He also complained that slabs removed from the entrances of residents’ houses during the initial construction had not been restored as promised.

He said, “The quality of the work they do now has reduced compared to what they did when they started. The contractors also removed the slabs at the entrance of our houses, and they promised to return them but, as we speak, they have refused to do so.

“When we approached them and reminded them, they said it was not part of their work and that they would not return it.”

Another resident, who identified himself simply as Taiwo, said the poor condition of Baale Street and inadequate drainage had become major concerns for residents, particularly because the area hosts several secondary schools.

“This is Baale Street, adjacent to Unity Valley, where we have three government secondary schools. You can imagine the number of students, teachers, parents and other residents who use this road every day.

“They go through a harrowing experience while using the road. Some of the students often get messed up by the muddy road when it rains.

“The road and drainage are major challenges here. The government needs to intervene and ensure that the road and drainage are properly fixed because the situation affects everyone in the community, especially the students,” he said.

Taiwo urged the state government to monitor the project closely and ensure that it was completed to specification, saying residents had endured the disruption for too long.

When contacted for a reaction, the state Commissioner for Information, Gbenga Omotoso, could not be reached. A text message sent to him had yet to be replied to as of the time of filing this report.