“You can’t trade here at all. It’s impossible. That is why I came to tell you myself.
The Lagos state Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has ordered traders occupying the rail line at Agege station to vacate the area within two days.
The two-day ultimatum came during an inspection of the ongoing Red Line rail project at Agege on Wednesday, September 27.
In his address, he firmly reiterated that the rail corridor was not a marketplace for the sale of goods but a transit route for trains, which are predicted to travel along the road at nearly 10-minute intervals, posing potential danger to the lives of the traders.
Mr Sanwo-Olu, in addressing the crowd of traders said “It is a government road that is why the government built everything. It is for transportation not a market. I am giving you two days to leave this place because we are coming to clear everything next week”
“You can’t trade here at all. It’s impossible. That is why I came to tell you myself.” He further warned “the Government has invested so much on this place for transportation. We will put it in newspapers, television, and social media. Once the train starts working, it will be scheduled to pass here almost every ten minutes. I don’t want lives to be wasted.”
The governor also gave clear directives to the task force to push forward and begin the clean-up process adding that the project must be completed before the end of the year.
To expedite the process, traders and squatters must adhere to instructions to vacate the premises or be met with stiff force.