Residents and landlords of the port city of Apapa have lamented indiscriminate defecation by tanker and truck drivers on all the roads and gutters in Apapa.
The residents who also condemned okada riders who sleep on their bikes openly in the streets at night, which they said, posed a threat to the health and well-being of Apapa residents, also called on the Lagos State Government to provide public toilets.
In a chat with our correspondent, Prince Aderemi Olikuntuyi, the Chairman of Apapa Residents Association, said the truck and tanker drivers as well as okada riders take advantage of gridlock in Apapa to defecate indiscriminately.
He added that all efforts made by the association to stop the drivers and riders from turning their roads to public toilets have so far proved abortive because there are no public toilets, which the drivers can use.
He said: “First, it is the nuisance of tanker and truck drivers who pack their vehicles indiscriminately along the major roads leading to Apapa, especially on the overhead bridges, thereby causing serious traffic jam. Asides, these tanker and truck drivers littered the whole environment with feaces and urine making the area filthy and disgusting.
“To effectively and efficiently tackle such problems, it is advised that the Lagos State Government should immediate step in on this issue. The issue is not to be left entirely in the hands of the Federal Government. Also, in order to prevent an outbreak of epidemic in Apapa, there is the need to provide functional public toilets,” he said.
Given that Apapa is the hub of economy and commerce in Nigeria, the association called on the Lagos State Government, the Federal Minister of Transport, the Federal Minister of Works and Housing and the Presidency to urgently address the situation in the Apapa community and its environs.
Olikuntuyi also rued the way security personnel unlawfully escort and extort commuters, even as he condemned the recent shooting of a customs agent by personnel of Nigeria Customs Service at Mile 2.
“It has seemingly become a norm for security personnel in Apapa community to unlawfully extort commuters on daily basis in Apapa and making life unbearable for the people of Apapa community. This particular action immensely contributed to traffic jam in Apapa. It can be seen that the shooting of the young Nigerian who had cleared his goods by a customs officer depicts the height of brutality by security officer in Apapa,” he said.
