Lagos
State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode on Tuesday said the plan of his
administration to transform Oshodi into a world class transport interchange in
the next 13 to 16 months would go a long way to depict the regeneration plan of
the State, just as he said that the project would also totally remove all
notorious activities associated with the area.
Governor
Ambode, who spoke at the Lagos House, Ikeja during a meeting with key
stakeholders on the planned transport interchange, said by the time the project
is delivered, the fear of insecurity must have been totally removed from the
area, while Lagosians would be treated to the best of facilities compared to
any other where in the world.
The
meeting, which was a follow up to an earlier forum organized by the State
Government through the Office of the Special Adviser to the Governor on Urban
Development to sensitize stakeholders on the project, was attended by leaders
of National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), market associations and
community leaders.
While
pleading with the stakeholders to support the project which is billed to take
off on June 1, 2016, Governor Ambode said the interest of market men and women
and transporters have been taken care of, as they would make more money
compared to what they are currently making. In a statement released by the
Chief press secretary, Habib Aruna.
He
said:
“I
am so happy that we are working together on this project. What we are doing today
is what we have been planning for long and our plan is to transform some
notorious areas in the State to places like Victoria Island. Oshodi is known
for all kinds of notorious activities and we want to totally do away with that
belief and the best way to go about it is to give the people world class
facility and make them to live better lives.
“We
want the people in Oshodi to be identified with good and not bad things all the
time and that was what made us to decide that the kind of development going on
in Victoria Island, Lekki and other places should take place in Oshodi as well.
I mean, I find it very disturbing that our children in Oshodi would have to
travel to Lekki or Ikeja to have access to good shopping mall. So, what we have
decided is to regenerate Oshodi.
“Now,
if we say there are 13 Bus parks all scattered in Oshodi. Can we put these Bus
parks in the same place? You know it is not possible for me to bring the
drivers or the buses to Oshodi. It would still be the people who are currently
operating there. But the plan is that those who are operating there now, we can
make life more comfortable for them and they would still be the ones operating
the buses.
“The
issue is that when we transform the terminals, what kind of buses should fit
into the new look and that is why we are engaging all the stakeholders,
especially the transport people. We can take away all these yellow buses and
put these other buses but you will be the operators, and all we are only doing
is to provide you with world class terminals that you would even be asking is
this happening in my lifetime. So, instead of scattering ourselves all over,
let all of us be in one very well organized and secured place,” Governor Ambode
said.
Among
other plans, according to the Governor, is the provision of about 800 modern
buses which would run 24/7 and would convey Lagosians to all parts of the State
in a more comfortable arrangement.
Speaking
on the market, Governor Ambode said the new transport interchange would
accommodate world class containerized shopping mall with recreation and
entertainment facilities, while the existing market men and women in Oshodi
would be the same people to be allocated with the shops.
“I
plead for your tolerance because eventually this whole thing is coming back to
you but we must have achieved so much. You see, Oshodi is the entrance point
from the international Airport and it create the image of where we want to go
and once we are able to create that image, nobody will ever remember Oshodi in
their head for anything bad. The only thing that would be left is for us to
ensure that the road from Oshodi to international Airport meets international
standard and by that, we would have regenerated that part of Lagos for good,”
Governor Ambode said.
Responding,
Lagos State NURTW Chairman, Mr. Tajudeen Agbede commended the Governor for the
initiative, and expressed the readiness of his members to support the
government to make the project a reality.
Also,
a market leader in the area, Mr. Lateef Tajudeen thanked Governor Ambode for
the concretized Brown Street in Oshodi, but pleaded that their members should
be carried along in the allocation of the shops in the shopping mall.xx On his
part, Managing Director of Planet Projects Limited, the contractor partnering
with government to deliver the interchange, Mr. Biodun Otunola assured that the
firm will meet up with the scheduled time.
He said the project would gulp about $70
million, adding that several financial institutions have expressed interest to
be part of the project.
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