Work begins on Lagos-Badagry road this month, says Sanwo-Olu

TRACKING >>Work will begin on the dilapidated Lagos-Badagry Expressway this month, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu said on Sunday.

The governor also declared zero-tolerance for pot-holes on the metropolis’ roads.

He has made good his promise to improve workers’ welfare, with the provision of 15 brand new staff buses.

Inspecting the Lagos-Badagry Expressway and other areas, Sanwo-Olu said the repair would cover Maza Maza, Iba junction up to Okokomaiko end of the road.

The work, he said, would be completed before the end of the year or early next year.

He said commercial activities would no longer be allowed around the National Theatre to the Maza Maza stretch so as to open up the 10-lane road for smooth traffic.

The governor said a task force would be constituted to carry out a massive clean-up of the area.

“We will ensure that commerce on the western axis of Lagos comes back; that is why we have come here. We should be able to complete the road from Maza-Maza to Okokomaiko before the end of the year or the beginning of next year with the needed funds to do it,” he said.

His administration, Sanwo-Olu said, would work with the Federal Government on the Okokomaiko, Agbara to Seme Border section of the road.

Declaring zero-tolerance for pot-holes in his remarks at the inauguration church service held for him and his deputy, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, at the Chapel of Christ the Light, Alausa, Ikeja, the governor said he would use the church to propagate his administration’s policies.

He urged religious leaders to sensitise their adherrents on sanitation and driving against traffic, adding that Lagosians will decide whether or not to bring back the Saturday sanitation day.

The governor, who started his remarks with two songs: “I have a father who will never, never fail me”, and “Oh God I am very, very grateful”, said his administration would be for all.

“God wants us to bring about good things in government; He wants to use us as a point of contact for others who will come after us. Lagos is very important in Nigeria, if we get it right in Lagos, other states will get it right,” he said.

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In his sermon, Bishop of Lagos West Anglican Rt. Rev. Dr. James Odedeji charged the governor not to be carried away by the glamour of office or abandon God because of work. “God should always come first; people believe it is time for righteousness, God also has great expectations from you. Look unto God; be firm, fair, weigh every advise you get before taking decision , be friendly and be a father for all”.

“You are responsible to the people but accountable to God who made the office available to you,” he said.

Odedeji enjoined the congregation and Lagosians to remember Sanwo-

Olu and his deputy in prayers, adding: “if they succeed we have all succeeded, we must support him positively, don’t demarket him.”

On Friday, the Alausa Muslim community held a special Jumat service at the Secretariat Mosque for the governor and his deputy.

The new buses, which are similar to the ones launched by President Muhammadu Buhari at Oshodi Transport Interchange in April, were parked at the secretariat, with more coming in.

Sanwo-Olu promised to provide the workers about 40 brand new buses when he saw their old buses during his first day at work on Thursday.

He also promised that the Resource Centre at the Olusosun Dump site, near Ojota, would be used to train and retrain youths on how to convert waste to wealth when completed.

According to him, Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) would be strengthened to collect recyclable materials for the creation of more jobs.

“We are here today to validate the Executive Order we signed, this is where we receive 70 per cent of the waste in Lagos; the facility is 28 years old so we want to ensure that it can receive waste for the next 23 years”, he said during a visit to the dumpsite on Friday.