* Arrests 23 occupants
The Lagos State government, in the course of demolition of illegal structures, has uncovered another set of apartments under a bridge located in the upscale area of Ikoyi.
On Tuesday, the Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, through a tweet on his official X handle page, had announced the discovery of an apartment under the Dolphin Estate Bridge in Ikoyi where the occupants pay N250,000 annual rent.
In a latest tweet on his X handle page on Friday, Wahab announced that the illegal settlement was discovered under Osborne Bridge, Ikoyi.
He said: “Another illegal settlement was discovered under the Osborne Bridge, Ikoyi. Lagos State Environmental Sanitation Corps @LAGESCOfficial (KAI) commenced an immediate clearance operation,” the commissioner wrote on X.
He also shared videos of the location.
The government had earlier dislodged under bridge tenants who paid N250k annually to yet to be identified landlords.
The occupants, who were dislodged in the process, were discovered during an enforcement exercise by officials of the government during demolition of illegal structures
Wahab stated that there were 86 partitioned rooms of “10×10 and 12×10” sizes.
He added that the enforcement team of Ministry of Environment and Water Resources successfully removed all structures, including a container used for various illegal activities, from beneath the Dolphin Estate Bridge.
The commissioner wrote: “18 individuals squatting illegally under the bridge leading from Dolphin Estate were arrested yesterday 30th of April, 2024 by the officials from the Lagos State Environmental Sanitation Corps.
“A total number of 86 rooms, partitioned into 10×10 and 12×10, and a container used for different illegal activities were discovered under the Dolphin Estate Bridge.
“They have all been removed by the enforcement team of the Lagos State Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources.”
Mr. Kunle Rotimi-Akodu, the Special Adviser on Environment and Water Resources to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, further confirmed the eviction of illegal settlers from underneath the bridge towards Dolphin Estate in Ikoyi.
Rotimi-Akodu said in total, 23 persons were arrested during the eviction, which was carried out by officials of the Lagos State Environmental Sanitation Corps, popularly known as Kick Against Indiscipline (KAI).
He said the exercise is part of ongoing clampdown on illegal structures across the metropolis, and aimed at ridding Lagos of illegal structures.