Rasheed Shabi, the Chairman, Lagos House of Assembly Committee on Environment (Parastatals), has called on Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to urge the Office Drainage Services in the State to remove all drainage channels to ensure proper refuse disposal.

This was made known by the lawmaker through a call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Sunday.

The lawmaker also instructed the Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development to demolish all illegal structures built on setbacks of canals across the state.

The Chairman, representing Lagos Mainland II, stated that clearing of major canals across the state should be intensified to prevent flooding.

Shabi also adviced the local governments and local council development areas to teach people the habit of regular clearing of secondary drainage channels across the state.

While saying that drainages and canals had not been properly channeled, he said, “Though the causes of the flood have been natural and man-made, there is a need for the Ministries, Departments and Agencies to be proficient in their duties.

“The recent torrential rain especially over the weekend in the state made residents lose their properties.

“I want to urge the Ministry of the Environment to explain what they have done in the last one year and most importantly people should stop dumping refuse in drainage channels.

“The enforcement agencies should also clamp down on people engaging in indiscriminate dumping of refuse,” he said.

He, however revealed that indiscriminate erection of buildings near water banks should also be considered, adding that the situation must be urgently addressed to prevent more disaster.

Muyiwa Gbadegesin, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Lagos Waste Management Authority, stated that the agency’s Marine Waste Unit had started manual evacuation of waste from drainage channels along Kusenla Street in Ikate-Elegushi.

Gbadegesin, complained over a post on his X platform that “Some unscrupulous residents have been dumping waste in these drainage channels for some time, leading to heavy flooding whenever it rains.”