Gridlock at Airport bus stop along Lagos-Abeokuta expressway as Lagosian rush back home due the closure of some roads because of the visit of President Buhari in Lagos tomorrow.
Tag: Gridlock
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Gridlock
IT WAS A terrible experience. Like other motorists, I least expected what I went through on the Lagos – Abeokuta Expressway on Sunday. As I entered the road from under the bridge at Cement bus stop, what I saw ahead was not amusing at all. It was a stretch of vehicles coming from God knows where. It stretched as far as the eyes could see. I panicked as I wondered how I would get to work in good time. It was about 2.30 p.m. Can I stay in this log jam? I wondered as I looked for a way, any way, out to facilitate my movement to work.
Then I saw an opening through the road median. I took it and turned back to pass through Dopemu, thinking it would be better. That was my greatest mistake. If only I had known I would have stayed on the express. Getting off the Dopemu road to connect Dairy Farm behind Oniwaya Road took some time. That did not bother me much because I thought once I leave there it would be smooth sailing to connect Agege Motor Road off the old Lagos – Abeokuta road. By the time I got to Dairy Farm junction, it was past 3 o’clock. I was still not bothered. The traffic would soon ease, I mused to myself.
It was wishful thinking. The traffic refused to move. For about 20 minutes, we were on one spot. Many motorists in front of me and behind me started to turn back. As they did, they created a little space for those of us still in the traffic, but it was no consolation. As we took up the space they left, we had no other room to maneouvre. Is this how I will stay in this traffic for the whole day? Won’t I turn back and go and take Capitol Road? Will that road be better considering the ongoing work on the Pen Cinema flyover? I ruminated as I thought of how to free myself from the traffic mess.
After weighing all my options, I resolved to stay put on the Dairy Farm road, especially after listening to the Lagos Traffic Radio report update on the chaotic traffic jam. It was total chaos. The express was jampacked; Dopemu was not better and the Agege Motor Road by Sule Street junction linking Ile Zik to connect Ikeja Along was a bedlam. I have been in bad traffic before but that of Sunday was in a class of its own. Agege was locked down. If I was not driving, I would have found an alternative way out. But I could not abandon my car and just take off like that. Even if I wanted to, there was nowhere to park because every available space was taken up by vehicles.
As we crawled towards Sule Street junction to burst out on Agege Motor Road, an oncoming commercial bus driver who caught my eyes, said ”oga, if you are going to Oshodi, you better follow the express”. But how do I return to the express from which I turned back about two hours earlier thinking that going through Dopemu will be better. As it were, I was stuck. I gritted my teeth for what lay ahead. It cannot be worse than what I have experienced so far, I muttered under my breathe. After some minutes, we started moving again. And the time was flying. By 6 p.m., we started sighting Sule Street junction in front. The traffic, as they say in local parlance, was not smiling at all. The police and Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) officials were there.
But they could not do much. They were overwhelmed by the situation. Getting out of Sule Street junction was a battle on its own. Those coming from Agege and others from the opposite direction were not ready to give way to those of us trying to join Agege Motor Road. The police and LASTMA officials came in here to restore order. It was one of the many rivers to cross. Few meters ahead were two or three other junctions from which vehicles were streaming out. Come and see people on the road that evening. Many passengers resorted to trekking after sitting inside buses for hours without movement. The kerb was brimming with people trudging to their destinations, while vehicles jostled for space on the road.
At last, I got to Ile Zik and heaved a sigh of relief. From there to Airport bus stop, the traffic was still bad because of those either driving against traffic or turning on the main road. With ongoing work on the express and Pen Cinema, there is need for the law enforcement agencies to introduce traffic control measures to avoid the kind of mess we saw in that axis on Sunday. I learnt that it was not different last Friday. There is still a long way to go before the job is completed, which will ease traffic in that area. Between now and then, people should be able to drive without fear of sleeping or wasting too many manhour on the road. Over to the police and LASTMA.
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Fed Govt to shut depots over Apapa gridlock
The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) yesterday said it will not hesitate to shut any depot that still has trucks on the Lagos Apapa roads.
Its Director, Mordecai Ladan who gave the warning in Lagos said parking on the road is against the rule in the petroleum industry.
Speaking at the DPR (Lagos Zonal Office) 2017 Annual General Meeting (AGM) which had in attendance stakeholders in the downstream oil sector, Ladan said bad roads and inadequate infrastructure have contributed to the gridlock, arguing that the refusal of depot operators to abide by the laid-down rules has further complicated the problems.
The Director told the depot operators to prevent the wrath of the law complying to fall on them by obeying laid down rules in the industry.
He said: “For example, all trucks now proceed directly to the depots to queue up for loading instead of staying at the holding bays to be invited when it is their turn to load. Let me reiterate that this practice encouraged by the depot operators is contrary to the terms of their licenses.
“I therefore wish to remind all depot operators that part of the conditions of their licences is that every depot should operate a holding bay, where trucks are required to park and wait until it is their turn to load at the depots.
“Government has the power to shut down operators among other punitive measures for defaulters.
“We are partnering with Lagos State government to ensure that operators strictly abide by the rules, for general safety and decongestion of the depot area.”
Speaking on the theme of the forum-Safety: Our Joint Responsibility, Ladan lamented that illegal lubricant sales outlets have continued to spring up in the country, adding that it has continued to take toll on safety and quality of products in the downstream sector.
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How to end Apapa gridlock , by Ambode
Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode yesterday identified seamless port operations as permanent solution to the traffic gridlock in Apapa.
Ambode spoke at the Lagos House in Ikeja during the second edition of Lagos Corporate Assembly tagged ‘A+ Meets Business.’
The forum was organised by the State Government to interact with members of the Organised Private Sector (OPS) as well as Small and Medium Scale Enterprises.
The governor lauded the move to repair major roads in Apapa, but wants issues that gave rise to the crisis to be addressed.
According to him, call-up system for tankers and containerised trucks must be structured to eliminate the present chaos, while issuance of licenses for more tank farms in the axis must be put on hold.
He said: “Beyond the roads, the fundamental issues have more to do about the concession and also the fact that the basic capacities of the ports not meeting what is presently going on there and then maybe in the loading bay inside the ports, you only have capacity to accommodate about 50 trucks and then there is no organised exit and entrance system. So, someone who does not have any permit drives all the way from other states without any focus and then pack on the bridge; he does not even have any business inside the ports, the ports maybe can only take 50 trucks and then you have almost like 500 trucks so everything is just totally disorganised and because Lagos is a sub-national, there are limitations of political power play and the conflict of personalities. Those things affect your organisational drive. So, sometimes, Governors sometimes get frustrated and out of frustration you keep quiet.
“The truth is that those issues are more germane than the roads. So, if Akin Ambode goes and repair the roads but the planning process and logistics to enter the ports are not in my hand. If I stop those trucks at the toll gate, they will say I am being sectional and so I must allow free movement; we are just in a fix.
“On repairing the roads, the Federal Government has taken charge but one thing is to say what you want to do, the other thing is to quickly do it. In the process of planning, speaking and delivery, it could take years but within our own limit as a State Government, we have set up a Joint Task Force of all the security agencies to ensure that at least there is free movement within the structured chaos we have in Apapa.”
While expressing optimism that the intervention of Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo would go a long way in addressing the crisis, the Governor also condemned the granting of approval for another tank farm to be situated in Apapa, saying such would only aggravate the chaotic situation already on hand.
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Counting the cost of Apapa gridlock
The deplorable state of access roads to the nation’s premier seaports in Lagos has become a pain in the neck for port users, residents and stakeholders in the maritime sector. Despite the huge revenue generated from the ports daily, successive administrations, curiously, have failed to muster the political will to fix the roads. Maritime Correspondent OLUWAKEMI DAUDA reports that the situation is taking a huge toll on businesses.
The worsening gridlock along the road leading to Apapa and the Tin-Can Island ports in Lagos has thrown the Nigerian maritime sector into confusion.
Apart from adding to the cost of doing business in the area, it has made the ports unattractive while hurting the trade facilitation programme of the Federal Government. It also ridicles the status of Lagos as Nigeria’s commercial nerve centre.
To operators and stakeholders in the maritime sector, the deplorable state of access roads to the ports has exposed the complacency of successive administrations in resolving an major issue that stands in the way of boosting the nation’s economy and promoting the wellbeing of Nigerians through efficient use of the nation’s seaports.
Some operators and stakeholders, who spoke with The Nation, wonder why the current administration has not considered it expedient to fix the access roads to the ports two years after mounting the saddle.
They, therefore, called on President Muhammadu Buhari, the Federal Executive Council ( FEC), and the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN), to urgently fix the roads.
For instance, one of the residents of Apapa who is also a lawyer, Mr. Francis Adeyemo, bemoaned the deplorable state of the roads leading to the ports and urged the Federal Government to address the problem.
His words: “The situation on the two major roads leading to the Lagos ports is so bad that motorists accessing the ports and adjoining areas get trapped in the traffic congestion for over six and seven hours.
“Workers, residents, importers, port users and other stakeholders going to and from work or businesses at the ports and its environ lose vital main hours translating to huge financial losses.
Added to this is the toll on the health of the people plying the road from stress of sitting down for long hours in the tormenting traffic while inhaling dangeros fumes from vehicles.
Adeyemo lamented that the problem is taking a huge toll on users of the nation’s seaports because of the slow evacuation of cargo from ships berthing at the ports due to slow turnaround time for containerised trucks which are trapped in the gridlock in and out of the ports.
Accordin to him, the dwell time of ships has increased from three days to a minimum of 12 to 15 days now and the financial implication of the problem on shipping business is that importers and exporters are incurring extra cost to charter vessels and pay for insurance .
“It is appauling that the Federal Government under Buhari and the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Fashola who is the immediate past governor of Lagos State allowed the traffic crises on the roads leading to the Lagos ports to degenerate to this shameful stage. This has eroded the competitiveness of the two ports compared to the neighbouring countries,” Adeyemo lamented.
Access to the ports paralised:
When The Nation visited the ports, last week, access to the two Lagos ports was virtually non-existent. Road and rail transit to and from the ports remained paralysed. This was in spite of efforts of the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority ( NPA), Ms Hadiza Bala Usman, to collaborate with the private sector to salvage the situation. “The work done so far by the contractors handling the Apapa road is far below stakeholders’ expectations. The contractors have done only about one per cent of the entire project. We are not happy that the project is moving on a snail speed and that was not the promise made to us when the job was given to Dangote Group, a port user, who spoke with The Nation, said.
Manufacturers’ cargoes trapped
Clearing agents of some manufacturing firms said they are finding it tough at the Lagos ports to clear their consignments.
Some of them told The Nation that their goods have been trapped because of the traffic gridlock on the roads and that they suffer unnecessary delay in moving their goods out of the ports.
“This explains why goods from the nation’s sea ports are some of the most expensive in the world because of the difficulties we face in clearing and moving them out.,” said Mr Kayode Ogunsanu.
Ogunsanu said goods worth billions of naira belonging to eight firms and some news print belonging to some newspaper companies are trapped at the Tin Can Island and Apapa ports.. The delay, he said, has serious implication for the firms’ production, if the government fails to address the issue.
“Already, the delay has led to the payment of huge demurrage to shipping companies and rent to terminal operators. It is also affecting their targets for the last quarter of the year.
“The firms’ agents are shuttling from office to office, in and outside the ports, to sped up clearing.
“Importers and clearing agents are also in the same boat because banks are on their neck to service their loans and that is why we are urging the Federal Government to exercise its power under Section 152 of CEMA to waive all demurrage and other charges on the affected goods.,” Ogunsanu said.
He lamented, for instance, that banks have been pursuing his principals for part payment, which was due last month and the demurrage is huge.
Investigations revealed that over one million containers laden with various cargoes said to be worth over N3 trillion are currently trapped at the Lagos port complex due largely to the inability of importers to evacuate them on time because of the gridlock caused by the bad roads.
Some sections of the road were blocked by the contractors carrying out the epileptic repair when The Nation visited the site at the weekend.
The President, Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents ( ANLCA), Prince Olayiwola Shittu, berated the government for not paying adequate attention to the road. He, however, gave kudos to NPA for the N1.8billion released so far by the agency to facilitate the work on the road.
“The gridlock along the the port access road is not only a shame, but a national embarrassment. It is a big threat to the nation’s economy and national security.
“A situation in which massive volumes of imported cargo cannot be cleared or discharged has direct economic consequences. Port charges are mounting, importer credits are growing; the supply chain for both consumer goods and essential raw materials is disrupted,” Shittu said.
He stated that although, the current management of NPA has shown its displeasure over the state of the road and released a huge amount of money for its repair, Nigeria’s image as a prefered destination has continued to get worse, just as her reputation for quick cargo clearance is sinking.
“President Buhari needs to do something urgently about the road. We are tired of the slow space of the work. Government must not wait for the repairs on Warf road to be completed before normal port operations would be restored.
“The road repairs and the decongestion of the port must be treated as clear national emergencies requiring the mobilisation of all known institutional resources to restore sanity in and around our ports,” Shittu said.
Apapa was built with a plan:
Apapa was built with a plan. It was designed to host commercial, residential, marine and other related business activities. Apapa has a Government Residential Area (GRA), with world-class buildings that have manicured flowers and date palms bordering sturdy roads.
Its Lagos Port Complex was designed to have options for goods leaving the terminal with freight either through roads or through the railway. To show its world class status, the former Premier of the Wester Region and the late sage of Ikenne Chief Obafemi Awolowo had his residenial house there. Hordes of heavy duty trucks were never meant to cause terror on the roads neither were it envisaged that those who promised good leadership like Awolowo would neglect the roads and deliberately kill the business activities in the area.
NPA assures stakeholders:
Few week ago, Usman and other stakeholders in the maritime industry expressed displeasure over the slow pace of work by contractors handling the Apapa Road when she visited the site.
The two-kilometre road starts from the Lagos Port Complex, Apapa to Ijora Bridge end of Western Avenue..
Ms Usman directed the contractors to bring more equipment to site and increase the number of moles used to fast-track the completion of the road as specified in the terms of agreement with the Federal Government.
Addressing reporters, after over three hours inspection on the level of work and the quality of job done so far by the contractors, she bemoaned the snail speed at which the contractors were carrying out the project.
“The contractors have not been able to reach optimal performance. They are still within one to two per cent completion. I have made them to understand that their level of performance is unacceptable. They need to increase the tempo of their work and deploy more efficiently. I have assured them that I am committed to seeing that relocation fund is released to them. But the level of the work as we have seen it now is not in the manner that we want. Therefore, we have made it clear to the contractors the equipment they need to complete their job on time,’’ Usman said.
She said NPA will ensure that the two-kilometre road is completed within the period stipulated, adding that the concerns raised would be resolved as the NPA has put in place a robust monitoring mechanism.
Residents of the area and motorists, who expressed their delight over the visit to the site, said there was the need for the total regeneration of the roads by the Federal Government.
This was sequel to complaints by port users including truck drivers and Apapa residents and its environ over the parlous state of many roads in the area and the inability of the contractors to mobilise enough equipment to site.
Many of them expressed worries that not much has been done by the contractors to alleviate the sufferings of the people working or residing in Apapa. The slow level of the work done so far, stakeholders say, requires immediate government intervention.
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Stakeholders move to end Apapa gridlock, port congestion
The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola, has called for the collaboration of all stakeholders to tackle traffic gridlock, port congestion and other problems in Apapa and its environs. He made this call at a stakeholders meeting on the ongoing Apapa Wharf Road reconstruction project in Lagos, last week.
The stakeholders at the meeting included the three financiers of the project, AG Dangote Construction Company Ltd, Flour Mills of Nigeria Ltd and Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA).
Others were National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO) and National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO), among others.
The stakeholders, after extensive deliberations, agreed to resolve issues of logistics and regulation of truckers and port operations.
They called on shipping companies to return to the system of using their loading bays and effective call up systems to end port congestions.
They also advised AP Molar Multi Terminal (APMT), whose cargo operations take hours to emulate the operations of Port Terminal Multipurpose Ltd (PTML) who have perfected the act of evacuating cargo within minutes.
They agreed that emergency interventions should be carried out on the roads around Coconut bus stop area and some other bad portions.
They resolved to have another inclusive meeting to carry Shippers, government regulatory agencies and other stakeholders who were absent at the gathering along to evolve permanent solutions,
Fashola advised the stakeholders to organise forums where they could proffer solutions to the problems and make recommendations to government to speed up solutions on various issues.
The minister stressed the need to put other ports in the country to use to reduce pressure on the two major ports in Apapa and promised to work with his transport counterpart, Mr Rotimi Amechi, to involve the rail sector in finding solutions.
He called for sacrifice on the part of the various stakeholders as the Yuletide season is approaching to ensure speedy solution to all the problems.
“During this period when everybody is sacrificing something, let us sacrifice, it is an exchange everybody must sacrifice.
“This is not about us, it is about everybody,” he told stakeholders.
He explained that procurement process for the Oshodi Tin Can Island road was ongoing.
Earlier, Fashola had inspected ongoing rehabilitation works at Costain and its environs, which he told journalists was to ensure smooth roads during the festive period.
Honorary adviser to the Dangote Group, Mr Joseph Makoju said that Dangote was handling and co-funding the Apapa Wharf Road reconstruction project as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).
Makoju said that it was painful that the project was being misunderstood by both the public and a section of the media who make negative remarks against the Dangote Group instead of commending it for giving back to society.
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Averting gridlock
•Container transfer from Apapa to Ebute-Metta may work but…
With effect from Monday, Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) will fully commence container transfer from the Apapa Port in Lagos to its Ebute-Metta Junction (EBJ) station. If well managed, the arrangement will ease the traffic gridlock that has become a permanent feature on the Apapa-Oshodi Expressway. Needless to say, it will also boost the revenue of the corporation, thereby putting it in a better stead to finance its operations. The corporation is presently doing skeletal movement of containers from the port to the station.
NRC’s Director of Operations, Mr Niyi Alli, who briefed newsmen on the development said: “We have started container shuttle services. We intend to run a number of dedicated trains into the port and bring out containers to Ebute-Metta with the intention to help decongest the ports.
“When the initiative finally comes on stream, we shall be running about three trains a day, each carrying about 20, 40 feet containers just to relieve the congestion at the port. This was done by NRC initiative to bring succour to Lagos residents.”
Shuttle services from the port to the corporation ought to have been a continuous thing over the years. But, somehow, the rail lines were abandoned and road transportation became the only mode of moving containers from the ports to their respective destinations. It was only a matter of time for the adverse effects of this to be felt. Lagosians, particularly those with businesses in the Apapa axis, as well as those who have one reason or the other to go there soon began to dread the place as a result of its often chaotic traffic situation, which appears to have defied the palliative measures put in place by successive governments. Even the expressway literally became a victim, as it began to collapse under the weight of the heavy duty trucks plying it with containers of imported items and fuel from the ports. What usually started as potholes over time metastasized to craters on the road with many trucks usually getting stuck in them.
This has been the experience for years until a few weeks ago when the Federal Government awarded the contract of the Apapa-Oworonshoki Expressway to the Dangote Group. This has more or less compounded the traffic situation in Apapa because, as some people would say, sometimes some things have to get bad to get better.
It would appear the rehabilitation of the road was the eye opener that the NRC needed to commence the new experience whose impact will hopefully be better felt from this week when the new scheme becomes fully operational. Jerry Oche, Lagos Railway District Manager (RDM) said in an interview that “Another major activity is the ongoing road construction in Apapa that has created more challenges for the commuters. Because of that, we had to look inward to see what we could do. “
Expectedly, freight forwarders and importers are already buying into this idea. But, beyond that, and commendable as the initiative is, we must warn that careful planning is essential in making it work without a transference of the traffic congestion from Apapa to Ebute-Metta. It is clear the rehabilitation of the road will amount to nothing if there are no alternative means of moving goods from the ports to their destinations. But we do not have to create more problems while trying to solve one.
We are happy that the railways have already liaised with the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), to ensure effective management of traffic along Murtala Muhammed Way in Lagos. There should be stiff penalties for importers who fail to take away their containers within the stipulated two hours because that is one way to ensure a disciplined and seamless operation. It is important for the corporation to get it right so that it can move to the next level of having similar bays at Ijoko, to serve importers in the Abeokuta, Sagamu and Agbara axis, and Dagbolu, an Ibadan, Oyo State capital suburb.
Ultimately, the idea should be to get the train service to all parts of the country. Even then, the government must consider dredging the ports in other parts of the country to enable ships from abroad berth there with their cargoes. This is the only way to end the nightmares on the Apapa-Oshodi Expressway and ensure stress-free movement of goods into and from the country.
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Gridlock takes toll on Apapa Mall
Sales have dropped drastically at the Apapa Mall, Lagos. This is a sharp contrast to its record two years ago, when it was opened. Then retailers jostled for spaces. Shop owners and customers blame the problem on the gridlock in the area, TONIA ‘DIYAN reports.
Apapa mall situated at Park lane in Apapa-Lagos, means different things to different people. For the high and middle class, it presents an ideal shopping rendevouz, while for the lowly placed, it is an opportunity to get into a life of comfort, including an avenue to experience a good ambience money can provide.
The mall is managed by Top Services Limited, owners of Adeniran Ogunsanya Shopping Mall (AOSM) in Surulere-Lagos and Cocoa Mall in Ibadan, Oyo State.
The percentage of the mall’s space occupied by top brands, which was forecast to increase yearly has decreased drastically no thanks to the frustrating traffic gridlock on Apapa Road. The ultra-modern retail centre used to offer its tenants an ideal platform to showcase their products to shoppers, create awareness for their brands, and take advantage of the tenant mix to compete with international brands now settling in Nigeria markets.
Apapa Mall, which was once a home to departmental stores, is deserted because of the perennial traffic gridlock on the Apapa Road.
The steady drumbeat of store closings is like a death knell for the mall, a source lamented.
The Nation Shopping observed that more than half of the shops in the mall have closed. Even the Cinemas have left. Only few shops are remaining. Residents lay the cause on the bad road, which has been neglected over the past two decades, and now has become nightmarish, for mall owners and commuters. The incessant gridlock has brought economic and other activities in Apapa to a standtstill, besides inflicting untold hardship on residents.
With the daily intense economic activities going on in Apapa, and tankers, trucks, trailers and lorries arriving the area for evacuation of goods for delivery to other parts of the country, the road is not helping matters.
No fewer than 1,000 trucks ply Lagos daily to lift petroleum products to various parts of the country, thereby leading to chaos.
A shop owner in the mall, Mrs Omoshalewa Ogunleye, who sells home appliances, such as bathroom, dining, kitchen, laundry machine, storage and interior decoration, said moving out of the mall is the best thing that happened to her dying business.
With mall vacancy rate at 35 percent, she said her business had been suffering. Before moving into the mall, Mrs Ogunleye had listened to experts, who provided answers to her questions. They included: Would the mall offer the best sales volume potential for my kind of products? Can I produce the appeal that will make customers come to my store? Can I deal with the competition of other stores within the mall? How much space do I need to handle the sales volume I expect to have? Where do I need the space (location within the mall)?
Few years later, it turned out that the experts did not take the effect the road would have on businesses into consideration.
Yet, home appliances’ shops are not the only losers at the mall. Cinema houses planned to provide entertainment have moved just as clothing stores have also jumped boat.
For start-ups eyeing the mall, the issue would not be to raise funds to be in the mall, it will rather be to experience huge foot traffic and make profit. Even top brands with the financial war chest are leaving the mall.
The Nation Shopping found out that most of the tenants in these stores no longer generate reasonable rate of returns on such investment and are being forced to quit staying in the cozy building.
It is, however, not phenomenon as some tenants continue to report good returns on their investment as the lease renewal factor in some malls say it all.
But Mr Ini Archibong, Public Relations Officer, Chastest Consult Limited, the firm in charge of Shoprite, said: “I am not aware of stores leaving the mall as a result of the gridlock in the area, but again Shoprite has no plans to exit mall; instead there are plans to open more stores in Lagos and the country as a whole. What matters most to Shoprite is to offer a world-class shopping experience to its customers with lower prices you can always trust.”
According to our source, additional department stores will soon be empty. He, however, said the reason for the trend is the heavy traffic.
Unlike other places, owners of the mall lament the low demand for retail space as human traffic remains low and sales dropping daily. They say no brands want to move in. They move out daily instead. According to them, 99 per cent of tenants have terminated their lease agreement in the mall.
“We’re no longer experiencing demand from grocery stores, cinemas, innovative entertainment venues, the fitness centre and others.
“As an owner of retail real estate, we must evolve as it is in our leasing and the evolution of our tenant roster. Mall tenants have an emotional connection with their customers. Thus, they stay in malls where they are profitable, operating from, a source said.
He however attributed the cause of the problem to the heavy traffic. He argued that brands that have left the malls were those that did not meet customers’ needs on price, variety, type and size of merchandise.
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Rain causes flooding, gridlock in Ikoyi, Victoria Island
Some parts of Lagos were flooded yesterday following an early morning rain.
It also caused heavy traffic in the metropolis.
Areas flooded were Adeniji Adele on Lagos Island, as well as Ikoyi and Victoria Island in Eti Osa Local Government Area.
Some residents of Idumagbo Avenue on Lagos Island said the flood was caused by the blockage of the major canal in the neighbourhood and its overflow.
A resident, Mr Yinka Shittu, said the road works in the area also contributed to the flooding.
“You can see that there is ongoing reconstruction work on this road which has not been completed. Also, construction works where the drainage canal meets the road have yet to be completed. Traders and some of us living in this area have tried to open up the drainage systems but the water has been stagnant,’’ he said.
A watch repairer, Alhaji Malik Yaro, said some residents dumped refuse in the drains.
“I am, therefore, not surprised that the floodwater here today was knee deep. People dump refuse of all sorts — empty containers, takeaway plates and papers — in the drainage system. I am assuring you that if the situation continues this way, nobody will like to pass through this place whenever it rains heavily like this again and the floodwater may enter people’s homes and shops,’’ he said.
A trader, Mr Chudi Ibeazu, said the road works were not moving fast enough.
“Since November 2016, the slabs where the canal joined the main road had been opened and we have not seen any serious work to show that they want to open up the drainage system for water to flow.
“You can see from the pattern of flooding; on the left side, coming from Adeniji, the water is still moving but on the right side, the water is not moving at all.
“My wish is for the government to take a cue from the effect which this rainfall had on the area and speed up construction works in the area.
“We clear the drainage system at the point where the canal joins the road every other day and especially on Thursdays, but the problem is that the water in the canal does not flow,’’ he said.
The rain which began around 7:30 am, ended around 9:50 in Somolu on the Mainland.
A resident, Mrs Oyindamola Adedapo, said the rain brought relief from the heat.
Another resident, Damola Oriyomi, said the rain was refreshing, adding that it is a sign that the area will be cool.
“Heat and mosquitoes have been a regular challenge to me every night because it has hindered me from sleeping well. I have been longing for rain since the beginning of the year and I thank God it rained. Am sure I will now be able to sleep better every night.”
Commissioner for the Environment Dr Babatunde Adejare said the government would not relent in its efforts to stem flooding in the metropolis.
He urged the public to change their disposal habits and refrain from turning canals and drains into refuse dumpsites.
Such behavioural change, the commissioner said, was necessary because sudden rain, like that one, could cause flooding. -
We’ll free ports of gridlock, says boss
•Authority to partner The Nation on reforms
Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA) Managing Director Ms Hadiza Balla Usman has emphasised her team’s determination to ensure that the ports are run in line with international best practices by focusing on the perennial gridlock, especially in Apapa, caused by poor access roads.
She said the truck holding bay opposite Tin-Can Island Port, Lagos would be made functional for the harbour to become leader in Africa.
Ms Usman spoke when the Chairman, Editorial Board of The Nation, Mr. Sam Omatseye and his delegation visited her office to brief the NPA management on a conference the newspaper organisation and others are planning.
The conference, with the theme: “Making Nigerian Sea Ports World Class”, is slated for March 30 at the Civic Centre, Lagos.
She said the NPA would partner The Nation to fast-track ports’ reforms and boost government revenue.
The NPA managing director said her team was focusing on how to make the ports the best in the maritime world.
Ms Usman added that the NPA would pursue the core values of efficiency, customer and stakeholders’ satisfaction, safety and security of port users.
She pledged her team’s determination to promote accountability, transparency, equity and facilitate trade in line with international best practices.
The agency, according to her, will collaborate with The Nation and other stakeholders to explore strategies to enthrone 24 hours cargo clearance from the ports through rapid infrastructural growth, reduction in cargo and vessel dwell time, zero-tolerance for corruption and associated vices.
She said her team would make the ports the hub of maritime business in West and Central African sub-regions to generate more revenue for the government.
“Let me assure you that NPA will support you to organise this conference because your paper is the best. The Nation is our newspaper. We have special interest in it and we are also proud of your reporter covering the maritime beat. Most of the time, I read his report because of his in-depth investigation. I will give a keynote address as you requested and by the grace of God, we shall all be there,” Ms Usman said.
NPA, she added, will achieve optimum performance and improved port services capable of attracting higher vessel patronage, translating into more revenue for the Federal Government and the nation.
Omatseye told Ms Usman The Nation, in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Transportation and Epsilon Limited, are organising the port reform conference to bring together agencies connected with ports to facilitate trade, enthrone seamless operations and boost revenue.
The conference, Omatseye added, is being anchored on an acceptable template and at the instance of the Federal Ministry of Transportation and The Nation.
The conference, he said, will cover most of the core responsibilities of the NPA, Nigeria Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Nigeria Shippers Council (NSC), the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), terminal operators, stakeholders and other port users.
Omatseye told the NPA boss there was need for the agency as the landlord, to lead other parastatals and operators in harnessing the potential of the nation’s seaports by promoting transparency, synergy and trade facilitation to make the port a hub in the West and Central African sub-region.