The Lagos State Government has intensified its environmental enforcement drive by sealing illegal reclamation projects and issuing stop-work orders to individuals reclaiming sections of the Ikota River near Partibons Homes Estate and Bee-Forth Estate Phase II, off Orchid Road in the Lekki area of the state.
In a statement released on its official X page on Monday, the government said the action followed an inspection tour by the Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, over the weekend. Wahab described the illegal reclamation as “heart-wrenching,” condemning the activities of those deliberately destroying the natural ecosystem for personal gain.
According to the commissioner, the ministry received an urgent alert indicating that some people were aggressively reclaiming parts of the Ikota River and erecting illegal structures with the intention of selling them to unsuspecting members of the public. He emphasized that while flooding cannot be completely eliminated in a coastal city like Lagos, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean and lagoons, it can be effectively managed through sustainable urban planning and resilient infrastructure.
Wahab revealed that some individuals had blocked stormwater channels, particularly systems 156 and 157, which are designed to discharge into the Ikota River and lagoon. He warned that such human interference with natural drainage systems worsens flooding and endangers lives, stressing that the government would not tolerate actions that put the safety of residents at risk.
During the inspection, Wahab also supervised the ongoing restoration of the right-of-way along the Ikota River alignment at Oral Estate II, where 17 illegal structures had already been demolished. He was accompanied by the Commissioner for Transportation, Oluwaseun Osiyemi, as part of a joint inspection of environmental violations along the Lekki–Epe Expressway in preparation for the upcoming Green Rail Line project.
Wahab added that abatement notices had earlier been issued to automobile dealers encroaching on wetlands and areas under high-tension power lines beyond the temporary approval granted by the government. He maintained that the temporary approvals clearly prohibited the construction of permanent structures and reaffirmed Lagos’ commitment to preserving wetlands as a key part of its long-term flood mitigation plan. Osiyemi further revealed that the Green Line project, which will run from Marina to Epe, is scheduled to begin in December and will be executed in phases over the next two to three years.