Lagos removes 17 houses on Ikota River’s alignment

Lagos State Government said it has removed over 17 houses for encroachment on the Right of Way  (ROW) of the Ikota River alignment in Oral Estate II.

Besides, the state authority  over the  weekend issued an immediate seal and stop work order for illegal reclamation activities to narrow and reduce the size of the Ikota River around Partibons Homes Estate/Bee – Forth Estate  Phase 2 off Orchid Road in Lekki area of the State.

The commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Mr. Tokunbo Wahab, gave the directive while speaking with the media after an inspection tour of the area, saying the illegal activities going on in the area is heart wrenching because some individuals have deliberately chosen to destroy the ecosystem provided by nature.

Wahab said the ministry recently received an SOS message that some people were aggressively reclaiming some parts of Ikota river and erecting illegal structures with the aim of selling the illegal properties to unsuspecting / innocent citizens.

He stressed:” There is no way flash flooding can be stopped in a coastal state, especially one like Lagos that is bordered by the Atlantic, Lagoons and rivers.’

He added  that flooding could only be mitigated by putting resilient infrastructure in place alongside various sustainable approaches.

“This present administration has introduced different approaches in mitigating flooding, some of which include the provision of resilient infrastructure, continuous maintenance of all drainage channels all year round by the Ministry’s EFAG team and construction of secondary collectors/primary channels Statewide,” he said.

He added some unscrupulous  individuals who  believe they are above the law are pushing back nature and blocking system 156/ 157, forgetting that these channel are on a coastal alignment  which must discharge into the Ikota  to further discharge into the Lagoon.

He said discharging of storm water had been designed by nature itself, but human activities have distorted it saying that government will not fold its hands  and allow the implication affect the majority.

The commissioner also visited the ongoing restoration of Right of Way along the Ikota River alignment in Oral Estate II, noting that a total of 17 units have been removed so far.

He recalled that government earlier engaged the property owners to find a win-win solution saying that it was necessary to remove the contraventions on the right of way along the Ikota River because the Ikota River is the only channel that supports the Atlantic in the axis.

The Environment Commissioner who was alongside his counterpart  in the Ministry of Transportation, Mr Oluwaseun Osiyemi also inspected environmental infraction along the Lekki/Epe expressway in preparation for the forthcoming Green rail line along the Corridor.

He explained that on the 26th of September 2025, abatement notices were served in sync with the Ministry  to automobile dealers on the Lekki/Epe Expressway who had totally encroached further on wetlands and under the High Tension wires than the temporary approved site allocated to them, adding that this negates the original master plan for the Green Line by the Ministry of Transportation.

He said the  temporary approvals issued to the automobile dealers stated that they are not to erect permanent structures because the site is under the power line, stressing that some of these dealers had pushed beyond the approved  site while encroaching on the wetlands.

He reiterated  the government’s commitment to preserve the wetlands across the state as wetlands are part of ways to proffer lasting solution to flooding.

“Wetlands are meant to help you hold the water till rains subsides and after the recent heavy rainfalls, the ministry in the course of flying Drones, realized that virtually the whole wetlands where coconut were planted  along Lekki – Epe Expressway Corridor have been seriously bastardized,” he said.

He said ministry was there to check the infraction levels and how the two ministries can work together to  salvage the Wetlands and restore the master plan to accommodate the green line, ordering that enforcement of the law against the infractions begin immediately.