The Lagos State Government has said that the ongoing project by the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) would not affect the residents of Mariplex Imperial Estate in Ikeja.
Mr Wasiu Akewusola, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Housing gave the assurance on Friday in Ikeja.
Akewusola said that the report on the project before the ministry did not indicate that the estate would be affected.
Akewusola urged the residents not to panic over the compulsory acquisition of part of the area for the expansion project.
According to him, adequate arrangement had been made to protect their interests in the expansion project.
“We will do our best to safeguard the rights of the residents as part of our responsibilities to the home owners under one of the housing schemes of the Lagos State Government,” he said in a statement by Mrs Adeola Salako, Director, Public Affairs in the ministry.
Mr Wasiu Akewusola, Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Housing.
The permanent secretary said the project would benefit all Nigerians to meet the ever increasing transportation challenges in the country.
He added that the rights of the “residents will be pursued utilising the accepted platform for the handling such issues, having it in mind that there are stipulated guidelines for compensations for those affected by government’s developmental projects”.
He said the government was assessing the impact of the project on the 1,000 square-metre to be acquired for the project to enable the state government get a credible data for the project.
“Lagos State Government is aware of the implications of the expansion of rail project, the result of the physical evaluation and environmental impact assessment will inform the next step of action in ensuring that the sanctity of the built environment is secured and the interests of the people protected.
“The well-being of the people who placed their trust in us for a habitable and conducive shelter is of utmost concern to us. We will ensure that we do our best to justify this huge confidence reposed in us,” Akewusola said.
The Chairman of the Residents Association, Mr Olusegun Adeyanju, said that certain critical infrastructure such as the estate’s swimming pool, the exterior fence, electricity poles and some parts of the road network would be affected by project.
Adeyanju said that should this happen, the residents would undergo a lot of inconveniences and deprivation since the total ambience of the estate would be compromised as a result of the project.
He also raised fears of noise pollution and security issues as some of the major negative consequences that would accompany the project.
