The Lagos State Government, in collaboration with the Nigerian Navy on Saturday, cleaned up the Marine Beach environs in the Apapa area.
They also dislodged illegal traders within the axis.
The Special Assistant to the Governor, on Environment, Olakunle Rotimi-Akodu, while speaking with journalists during the exercise said it was dedicated to Apapa and its environs.
“It is a beautiful marriage between the state government and the Nigerian Navy.
“This is a development in a positive direction, the whole of Apapa is dirty.
“After visiting the parks in the area, we’re pleased to see efforts being made to address the cleanliness, thanks to this synergy.
“You see that they cleaned everywhere, and the population of the Nigerian Navy is awesome.
“We love it and we hope to continue with that partnership, but we will not stop here in Apapa, we will continue to touch on so many areas that require cleaning,” he said.
Rotimi-Akodu also met with the traders and truck drivers around the area, giving them some guidelines on what and what not to do.
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“You have so many articulated vehicles and their boys, we discovered that they’re all sleeping in their vehicles.
“When they sleep in their vehicles, the tendency is for them to mess the place up, defecate and all.
“We’ve seen a substantial amount of rags and other waste in the area, largely from motorcyclists and associated vendors.
“So, we have met with them and spoken to them.
‘There are a lot of corrections we have agreed to,” he said .
He assured that the Lagos state government would conduct regular inspections to ensure compliance, noting their commitment to meeting the state’s and naval authority’s environmental cleanliness requirements.
“Going forward, we have our eyes there, we’ll be coming back here from time to time to see that things don’t derail again.
“We also told them they can’t sleep in the parks, the public toilet in the area has been shut for now because it’s so dirty.
“We told them the public toilet would be fixed within 72 hours.
“If we close it permanently, it will be an excuse for them to defecate elsewhere and we don’t want to encourage that.
“So, we’re giving them 72 hours to see that those things are fixed, and then we’ll have our officers to be here to see that they comply with all of those things,” he said.
The Flag Officer Commanding (FOC), Western Naval Command of the Nigerian Navy, Rear Adm. Michael Oamen, said he was happy with the partnership.
“What we are doing today is in line with what we call civil-military engagement, so as a military, we are part and parcel of every community that we operate in.
“So, as stakeholders , the officers and men of the Western Naval Command, have all come out, “he said.
He said Apapa had been the home of the naval base, adding that the Nigerian Navy started from Apapa.
“We are stakeholders in community, we want to be part and parcel of every progressive action of government.
“This is in line with the directive of the Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice-Adm. Emmanuel Ogala, and we are happy that we’ve started.
“The intention is to sustain this kind of corporate social responsibility. We want a nice, beautiful, and secured Apapa and, of course, Lagos State,”he said.
He commended the Lagos Waste Management Authority for their effort at ensuring Apapa was clean.
He advised Lagosians, particularly,Apapa residents, to observe high cleaning standards.
“I think it’s just for us to continue to reorientate the general public because cleanliness is next to godliness.
“Once the place is clean and organised, the security would be better coordinated,”he said.
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