Day: August 10, 2020

The Lagos State Government says all roads and bridges under construction in Apapa, the nation’s port city, will be completed by October.

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu gave the assurance on Sunday during an inspection tour of roads and bridges under construction in Apapa area of Lagos.

Mr Sanwo-Olu said that the traffic gridlocks experienced in the axis would be cleared once the projects were completed.

The governor visited the Costain bridge, Alaka bridge, Ijora bridge, Marine bridge, Liverpool, Lillypond and Mile 2, among others.

He said that there was a need to overhaul the entire Apapa road network to improve journey time in and out.

”We need to work in a methodological order and see how we redevelop the whole of Apapa.

”The construction going on is expensive because they are all concrete roads, we have Liverpool and Creek roads all completed.

”I understand that by October, all this network of roads will be opened up to traffic,” Sanwo-Olu said.

He said that the state, in collaboration with the Nigerian Ports Authority, was building another port in Lekki, which would be ready in two years time, to ease the pressure on Apapa.

He said that the government was also in discussion with stakeholders and some private owners to create a proper holding bay and with the call system to get trucks out of the way and free the roads for easy movement.

”We need to use this opportunity to appeal to all operators to see how they can formalise themselves in a way in which we can have a better, orderly society.

”Effect of what they are doing is not only affecting the citizens, it is also affecting our way of life.

”People living in this environ are complaining on a daily basis that they are not having the best of time just because the port is here.

”We are working with various stakeholders and need to synergise to understand what their challenges are and how best to address them.

”As a government, we have commitment and a sense of responsibility to our people and must bring about an operation in an efficient system where we do not continue to experience the permanent gridlock that is typical of Apapa.

”We want to also be able to regenerate the improvement of the roads and bring proper life back to Apapa,” Mr Sanwo-Olu said. (NAN)

Source: Premium Times

The Petroleum Tankers Drivers (PTD) Branch of NUPENG has said its planned strike will begin on Monday (tomorrow) as planned because the association has not reached any agreement with the Lagos State Government.

The National Chairman of PTD, Comrade (Otunba) Salimon Akanni Oladiti, said this in an interview with The PUNCH in Ibadan on Sunday.

He said the issues which forced the drivers to plan to embark on an indefinite strike had not been addressed.

He noted that talks between officials of the Lagos State Government and petrol tanker drivers failed to achieve the desired result.

Oladiti said, “We don’t have much to say. If the issues of extortion and harassment of our members are addressed, we won’t go on strike but if the issues are not addressed, we will go on with it.

“We are not happy to disrupt fuel supply because we know the effect but we cannot continue to cope with the problems.

“Security agents and hoodlums are extorting our members and officials of the Lagos State Traffic Management use taser on our drivers and this can kill.

“We have been trying to cope with this for a long time but it has got to a point that our members are accusing us of feeling unconcerned about their welfare. So, there is nothing we can do than to go ahead with the strike.

“We have been reporting to the government but nothing has come out of it. The state government called us to a meeting but nothing came out of the meeting. We are still waiting for them to call another meeting.

“We will still present our demands to them and if they are ready to address them and we see their commitment, we will not go ahead with the strike. But if they are not ready, then there is no going back on the strike.”

The National President of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, Comrade Williams Akporeha, and the General Secretary, Comrade Olawale Afolabi, had in a statement issued on Friday directed tanker drivers to begin the withdrawal of their services as from 12:midnight on Monday.

Culled from THE PUNCH