Rhodes-Vivour Says Lagos Govt’s Efforts At Tackling Perennial Floods Is ‘Pedestrian’.

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Amid the perennial floods that have ravaged parts of Lagos, Mr Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour has faulted the state government’s efforts in tackling the menace.

Several cars and houses were submerged with millions of commuters and workers stranded in many parts of the state following Wednesday’s torrential rains.

A day after the incident, Rhodes-Vivour, the Labour Party’s governorship candidate for the 2023 election in Lagos, faulted the state government for not doing enough to manage the perennial floods.

“The solutions that we have seen with this state government in the last 24 years have been very pedestrian,” he said on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief.

“You have your gutters, don’t dump waste in your gutters but what is your waste management policy? How have you brought it down to your local government? How have you created incentives for people to manage their waste because it can be converted to wealth?

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“How have you covered your gutters? How have you localised your canal management systems? How have you gotten your CDAs and local governments involved? We have a situation whereby local governments are just extensions of political parties. They don’t have a scheme in the game.”

Lagos Govt Apologises

The LP flagbearer appeared on the show alongside the Lagos State Commissioner of Environment and Water Resources Tokunbo Wahab.

While giving an update about the floods, Wahab apologised to residents and commuters and residents.

He said the floods were not due to the government’s lack of planning.

“I will start by saying to Lagosians, ‘We are sorry for the inconvenience caused due to nature’s cause yesterday morning’,” the commissioner said.

“It’s not for failure to plan that we had what happened yesterday. No, it was nature taking its full course. And we are sorry for those whose lives were disrupted: they could not go to work, they could not go to their marketplaces, they couldn’t go to school.”

Motorists were in gridlock and commuters were stranded as the torrential rains which lasted for hours grounded economic activities in the state.

— Additional details from Channels Television