The Lagos State Government has given a 48-hour ultimatum to motor boys, their drivers, traders and operators of mechanic workshops under the Marine Beach Bridge to vacate the area.
This is part of the clean-up exercise of Apapa and its environment being embarked on by the Lagos State Government in collaboration with the men of the Nigerian Navy under the Western Naval Command.
This was made known by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Environment, Engr. Kunle Rotimi-Akodu, during a chat with journalists after the exercise, which extended to Mobil road and Marine Beach on Saturday, May 24, 2025.
Rotimi-Akodu said the quest to clean up Apapa and its environment is a beautiful marriage between Lagos State and the Navy authorities, adding that it is an initiative that would make a meaningful impact in the affected areas by improving the well-being of the residents.
Alcohol sales are not permitted in parks, on roads, or in shanties
The Special Adviser said the team had gone round some places in the area, such as the motor parks, mechanic workshops and observed that there are a lot of environmental infractions in the area that the State and Navy are determined to restore sanity to.
He said the motor boys who sleep in the trucks in motor parks, traders on the roads and mechanics around are responsible for messing up the area, stressing that the partnership is a positive development that would be sustained.
Rotimi-Akodu said the team also addressed some of the motor boys, their drivers, traders and mechanics to enlighten them on the importance of the exercise, informing that operators of the mechanic workshops under the Marine Beach Bridge were given 48 48-hour ultimatum to vacate the area.
He noted that the state government does not permit motor boys to sleep in the parks or traders selling alcohol on the roads/parks, and shanties because they run afoul of the provisions of the State Environmental Sanitation laws.
He said the clean-up exercise would continue and get to all parts of the State, calling on stakeholders to collaborate with the government, maintaining that the collaboration is essential as government efforts alone can not suffice for ensuring a sustainable environment.
More on the partnership
Also speaking, the Flag Officer Commanding, Western Naval Command, Rear Admiral Michael Oamen said the exercise is in line with what the military authorities call civil military engagement, as such, the military is part and parcel of this initiative.
- He said the initiative is a very beautiful one that would rid Apapa and environs of all forms of environmental infractions, saying since the Navy is a stakeholder in the area, men of the Western Command have all come out to partner with the relevant Lagos State Government Environmental agencies to ensure that Apapa is clean.
- He said in every community that the Navy operates in, they take ownership, and Apapa has been the home of the naval base because the Navy started from there; as such, the Naval officers are happy to collaborate with the state government on the exercise.
- Speaking during the occasion, the Chairman of Apapa Local Government Area, Honourable Idowu Senbanjo expressed great appreciation to the Lagos State Government and the Navy for the initiative, adding that Apapa Local Government is always ready to render its support to such a cause.
Places visited/cleaned up during the exercise, which started on Friday, included Mobil Road, Marine Beach Under Bridge and environs where shanties were pulled down and carted away with LAWMA trucks.
