Residents of Ajegunle, a slum settlement in the Ikorodu area of Lagos state are calling on the government to provide them with social amenities like people in others parts of the state.
The Baale of Ajegunle, Chief Moyosola Oladunjoye told Nigeria Info’s Nnenna Okon who visited, that ‘’flooding, coupled with the Atlantic upsurge and the opening of the Oyan Dam’’ were some of the major challenges facing the community.
The traditional ruler also identified unemployment as a concern.
Chief Oladunjoye noted that there were ’’so many jobless boys” in the area.
He believes the construction of a good road network will provide job opportunities.
‘’If they can help us open this road to Irawo, that would give my boys some sense of belonging, empowerment by giving them okada (motorcycle taxi) or keke (rickshaw taxi)’’.
The Community Development Administration (CDA) chairman of the area, Sunday Awobona, is on his part, pushing for the provision of social amenities.
‘’No water. We are buying drinking water, we don’t have gutter, we have only one road in this community’’ he pointed out.
Residents of Ajegunle, Ikorodu in Kosofe LGA have to walk through muddy water to get to their homes, shops and places of work. They are pleading with the state government @followlasg to provide them with good road network, drainage system, water. pic.twitter.com/ovAh1AxFjQ
— Nnenna (@NnennaOO) April 20, 2022
Mr. Awobona laments the unavailability of a secondary school in the community for more than 10 years.
He describes it as a ‘’tense situation’’ adding that the ‘’children are used to going to Mile 12, Ketu before they go to school’’. That is a distance of more than four kilometres.
Another resident, Olawale desires a speedy setting up of a secondary school.
He wants government ‘’to put things in order” because “the suffering is too much.’’
Lagos Slums Lack Sanitation Facilities -Research
Research by the Lagos Urban Studies Group in conjunction with the Nigerian Slum/Informal Settlement Federation confirms the unavailability of social amenities in selected slums across Lagos State.
The findings of the research led by Dr. Peter Elias, a senior lecturer at the Department of Geography of the University of Lagos show that ‘’36.1 percent rely on trucks and water carriers and 25.4 percent patronise water vendors.’’
The research titled, ‘Giving Voice to Slums: Creating Digital Urban Platform for Community Self-Reporting Amid COVID-19’, was carried out to understand the socio-economic conditions and health behaviours of these communities during COVID-19.
Dr. Elias believes that residents of slums across the state should enjoy the same amenities as those in urban areas.
‘’Whatever is good for other citizens should be extended to them, they should have access to basic facilities.”
He wants the government to take advantage of the communal system being practiced in most of these communities.
‘’These people have workable structures that are communal driven, get to their leaders, get these things across to them, it will get to the last person,’’ He noted.
Dr. Elias’ research shows that slum dwellers depend on radio, television, and newspapers to get information and news, with radio being the main channel of information.
Another member of the research group and a co-investigator, Prof. Abigail Ogwezzy is urging residents to use the media as a tool for communicating with the government.
‘’Encourage your children, your young ones to go to such platforms, from there you can tell the government what your issues are.’’
