Operatives of the Lagos State Environmental and Special Offences, Enforcement, Unit, Taskforce, has issued a seven-day ‘Removal Notice’ to owners/occupants of illegal structures/Shanties, mechanic workshops, containarised kiosks and commercial bus garages around Government Public Schools at Mile 2, Badagry Expressway, Lagos.

Its Chairman, Olayinka Egbeyemi, said this at a gathering of illegal owners/occupants, traders/mechanics and sectional heads of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), warning them to immediately vacate the entire area and the vicinity of the Schools within the stipulated period.

Egbeyemi, a Chief Superintendent of Police affirmed that the ‘Removal Order’ became imperative following outcry by residents, particularly management of the Public Schools (Imoye High School and Amuwo Odofin Junior Secondary School) that criminal elements have turned the area into hideouts/spots for carrying out their nefarious activities thereby making the environment unpleasant for learning.

According to him, it was disheartening seeing the illegal business operators like mechanics, Iron benders, food/fruits vendors and others turning the entire perimeter fence of the schools into illegal trading spots.

He said they had littered the entire area with indiscriminate dumping of refuse and waste metal materials”.

Egbeyemi confirmed that investigation conducted revealed also that the illegal structures/shanties which served as abode to criminal elements who rob unsuspecting public of their valuables along highways on Lagos- Badagry Expressway do not have any permit or operating license from the Lagos State Government.

He reiterated that, immediately after the expiration of the ‘Removal Order’ on Wednesday March four, the Agency would embark on a clean-up exercise in the area and clampdown on all criminal elements.

The Chairman cautioned traders and occupants not to make financial contribution or bribe anyone to prevent or stop the removal order, saying Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu had, on compassionate ground, approved monetary compensation for those who deserve it.