Lagos Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources Tokunbo Wahab on Tuesday told members of the Lekki Residents Association that the decision to remove inner street gates in Lekki I was taken in the larger interest of all residents of the state.
Tokunbo Wahab, who spoke at a stakeholders meeting convened by his transport counterpart, Mr. Oluwaseun Oshiyemi in Alausa today, said the removal was a very painful decision that had to be taken because the State Government has the responsibility of regulating operations in Lekki I, a government scheme.
Noting the action was regrettable, Wahab said all the removed gates are intact and would be returned to the various zones of the residents association immediately after an amicable agreement is reached on modalities for re-installing the gates.
He reiterated that part of the agreement must include a provision that the gates cannot be shut before midnight and must have personnel manning them to ensure seamless entry and exit for all residents.
He said part of what informed the decision to remove all the gates was to avoid a situation where the State would be accused of cherry-picking streets that had their gates pulled down.
He corrected the wrong impression that only the Ministry of Transportation could deal with the removal of street gates, saying all ministries represent sub-units of one whole system under the purview of Mr. Governor because they are all linked and interrelated.
Also speaking, Commissioner for Transportation, Mr. Oluwaseun Oshiyemi said the meeting was not to apportion blame but to ensure that if the streets are to be gated, all laid down rules and regulations must be abided with.
He added that while the State Government is not keen to put the personal security of Lekki I residents in jeopardy, it will also not jeopardise the free movement of people as enshrined in the Constitution.
Earlier, the Chairman of the Lekki Residents Association, Mr. Yomi Idowu appealed to the State Government to reconsider the decision to remove all the inner gates.
He explained that following the directives of the Ministry of Transportation to the Lekki Residents Association to keep all the inner gates open, the association complied but had to contend with some recalcitrant street residents who refused to open theirs.
He recalled that he also experienced the issue of non-admittance to some streets in Lekki I where he was asked to provide access codes that were unwarranted and condemnable.
He attributed the indiscriminate erection of street gates to the experience residents of Lekki I had during the #EndSARS riot which brought about a quest to protect themselves against intrusion.
