The Lagos State Government has moved to establish a smooth Right of Way (RoW) for the construction of the Opebi-Mende link Bridge as it engages stakeholders on the importance of the project which is a priority for the current administration in the state.
This was made known by the Lagos State Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Dr Idris Salako, while speaking at the stakeholders’ meeting in Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos.
Salako described the construction of the Opebi-Mende link Bridge and approach roads as an iconic project that would help in addressing the Traffic and Transportation and the Making Lagos a 21st Century Economy Pillars of the T.H.E.M.E.S. Agenda of the Lagos State Government.
What the Commissioner is saying
Salako said, ‘’It is a known fact that the people are the ultimate beneficiaries of development projects like this. As promised through the T.H.E.M.E.S. Agenda of the present administration, the State Government led by Mr. Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu will continue to take concrete steps toward ensuring the delivery of the dividends of democracy to our people. Evidently, this particular project, like many that have been executed across sectors, will add on as a good example of making life more abundant for the governed.’’
State officials to serve demolition notices, and carry out valuation for compensation.
The commissioner enjoined the people to grant Public Officers and contractors working on the site unhindered access and hitch-free operations for the project to be executed in record time.
He stated that, as part of the procedure for the establishment of the RoW, officers from the Ministry would serve Statutory Notices on buildings earmarked for removal, mark such affected buildings at the expiration of the notices and also invite officers from Lands Bureau to carry out a valuation exercise for compensation purposes before the actual removal of structures.
Speaking at the occasion, the Special Adviser to the Governor on E-GIS and Planning Matters, Dr. Olajide Babatunde, urged all property owners to respect the RoW of public facilities to avoid the removal of structures, noting that the Governor had approved the consideration of compensation for buildings that must give way for public infrastructure.
In her own submission, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Works and Infrastructure, Engr. Aramide Adeyoye, urged the stakeholders to take ownership of the project and accord it the deserved support as their inputs and suggestions were factored in.
What you should know
- Recall that the construction of the Opebi-Mende link bridge and approach roads was flagged off on January 26, 2022, by Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who described the project as another milestone in the implementation of the Traffic Management and Transportation Pillar of his administration’s THEMES Developmental Agenda and the State Strategic Transport Master Plan (STMP).
- The Link Bridge, which is one of the legacy projects of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s administration, is aimed at easing the burden of commuters and decongesting traffic in the Ikeja axis and on Ikorodu road by providing a direct link between Opebi, Mende, Maryland and Ojota to Ikorodu road, reducing the perennial traffic on Mobolaji Bank-Anthony way, and setting precedence for Ojota commuters to link the 3rd Mainland Bridge.
- The state government had said that it expects the 3.9-kilometre link bridge to be completed by June 2023.