Nigeria’s Minister of Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, has noted that tough laws are needed as regards the protection of bridges and that such Laws must have Federal Government backing and support.
Mr Fashola warned Lagos residents against the use of under bridges as market places reiterating that bridges are built for ease of vehicular movement, movement of goods and services and for the benefit of humanity, not for commercial purposes.
The Minister ewas speaking during the inspection tour of the recently burnt Eko bridge and also at a press briefing on the rehabilitation and repairs of Eko Bridge burnt section (Apongbon and Ijora Olopa section).
“If you don’t give tough laws, things will not be done. You have our support, under bridges are not places of cooking or a residing place and it’s not only endangering their lives but also the lives of other people. Illegal way of living must be put to an end”, he said.
“We are appealing to the Lagos State government to ensure that all trading activities under the bridges in the state must as a matter of urgency be brought to a stop. We seek the cooperation of the Ministry of Transportation, Environment, Local Government Law enforcement agencies to help us preserve our bridges”, he added.
“The Minister emphasized that the aspect of stopping people from trading under bridges is a collective task, as government put laws asking people to stop selling under the bridge, buyers should as well automatically stop patronizing sellers at such unhealthy locations”, he stressed.
The Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Dr. Olufemi Hamzat warned the citizens to desist from doing business under the bridge and live the right way for the interest of others.
According to him, the State government is willing to support in any way that will ensure quick compliance by citizens to stop illegal use of the under bridges.
“The State Government will be available to monitor the process and provide assistance where necessary to ensure that the contractor have a smooth operation. In the aspect of people trading under the bridge, we will communicate with appropriate department to ensure that the issue is addressed”, he said.
The Director Highways (Bridges and Design) Engr. Oluropo Oyetade explained that as a result of the fire incident on the bridge, the section of the bridge has been closed and the Contractor has been directed to carry out technical evaluation of the bridge to ascertain the extent of the damage.
The Ministry’s Engineers have also been directed to carry out a thorough inspection of the burnt bridge and come up with a Technical report pending the Technical Evaluation.
Speaking on the extent of the damages, Managing Director, Messrs Buildwell Plants and Equipment Industries Ltd, Mr. Enile Aboohabib said that most of the bearing of the bridge needs to be changed, jacketing of damaged piers, removal of damaged expansion joints, unclogging of drainage gullies and some parts he said are about to collapse if not for the quick intervention of the Federal Government.
Aboohabib disclosed that the rehabilitation exercise has commenced but some materials will be shifted to the newly burnt Ijora section of the bridge as directed because of its busy nature than the Agbogbon section, with the scope for total completion to be June 2023.
“We are committed to the vision of the Federal Government and we have record of delivering project in record time. We have categorized the affected areas into 1 to 5 and work is ongoing. Now that we are allowed to close the bridge completely, it will make the work easier and faster”, he explained.
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