The chairman, Badagry Local Government Area of Lagos State, Olusegun Onilude, has urged the residents of the coastal city to be conscious of clearing their environment to check flooding.

In an interview on Monday in Badagry, he said flooding in the area was perennial 

“Our people should be conscious of sanitation so that we don’t compound our flooding challenges,” Mr Onilude said. “We are below the sea level that  anytime there is a heavy downpour; it will always overflow, so even the drainages lead to nowhere.”

He decried that heavy rains could destroy buildings constructed in the market, stating that the situation was beyond the council.

“When we look at the magnitude of what should be done, we realised that it is beyond the council, so we have written to the appropriate quarters, and we are waiting for them to respond,” he said.

He said the Ajara communities and Topo Idale were usually flooded for days despite using a pumping machine to control it.

Stating that Lagos was prone to flooding, the LG chair said, “We are the ones to provide a solution to it, and it has to be gradual.

“Even if we usurp  all the annual budget on flooding in Badagry, we can’t fix it.”

He urged residents to build drainages by their houses to help check the flooding.

“Residents are not doing this in some areas in Badagry, and when there is a flood, they will be complaining.

“Governments are not magicians that will command floods to disappear,” he said.

Mr Onilude said he would ensure that all drainage channels within the council were cleared up to ensure the free flow of water.

The National Emergency Management Agency had issued an advisory, cautioning residents, motorists, teachers, and school proprietors, among others, in Lagos to exercise restraint during and after downpours. 

(NAN)