Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has expressed his apologies to Lagos residents who found themselves stuck in lengthy traffic due to ongoing repair work at the Independence Bridge.
The bridge’s closure for repairs left thousands of people trapped in the vicinity from Wednesday evening until early Thursday. Footage and images of the stranded commuters circulated widely on social media, leading to public criticism.
However, on Thursday morning, Governor Sanwo-Olu visited the site to assess the progress of the work. He acknowledged the traffic difficulties and stated that better communication with the community regarding the situation should have been prioritized.
“First, I think what is appropriate is really to first tender apologies to all our citizens and to all Lagosians for the very, very difficult, heinous traffic that we experienced in the last 24 hours in the city and within the island of Lagos,” the governor who was accompanied by his deputy Obafemi Hamzat and other government officials said while inspecting the project.
“I think this apology is important so that we can take full responsibility as a government, both at the national and sub-national levels, for just taking our people through an unfortunate incident.”
Last month, the Lagos Government said it was closing the Independence Bridge in the Victoria Island area of the state for two months for emergency repairs.
The government asked motorists to use alternative routes during the period. However, on Wednesday evening, when the repair work began, thousands of commuters and other road users were locked in a severe traffic jam, prompting a public outcry.
Videos of motorists and other road users stranded in the gridlock quickly went viral on social media. Many of them left their vehicles and trekked several kilometres to reach their destination while hundreds of others spent hours, even to the early parts of Thursday, on the road.
In the wake of the public outcry, the Federal Government ordered an immediate reopening of the bridge to ease traffic.
“The Ministry hereby express regret for the inconvenience caused to the motoring public by the closure and appealed for their understanding and cooperation,” the Federal Controller of Works, Lagos, O.I Kesha, said.
‘To Avert Future Disaster’
Governor Sanwo-Olu, who acknowledged the difficulties commuters faced, however, said the closure was for the greater good of residents of the nation’s commercial heartbeat.
He said the repair work was to avert a disaster.
“It was all for a good cause, it is all to avert future disaster waiting to happen. You know how life is — there is never a best time for you to do all you want to do, there will always be challenges even if you think it is the best time,” Sanwo-Olu said.
“This contract has been signed over three years ago; our duty is to preserve the integrity of the Independence Bridge — which is like one of the oldest bridges in the country.”
Remote Business?
The governor asked residents of the state to plan accordingly, given the repair work.
“If you don’t have business to do in Victoria Island in the next two to three weeks, conduct your business via social media, telephone, Zoom meetings, online meetings, let’s plan,” the governor said. “If you don’t need to come and visit somebody here, you don’t have to come.”