BySamson Echenim
Friday, 11 Feb 2011
About 40 metres of land valued at between N1.5bn and N2bn has been washed off by erosion caused by a wrecked ship along the Lekki shore land, a frontline environmental activist, Mr. Desmond Majekodunmi, told journalists on Thursday.
Majekodunmi said this when briefing journalists, along with other council members of the Nigerian Conservation Foundation in Lagos, about another ship abandoned on the Lekki coastal line, which has already begun to cause erosion in the area.
According to him, in addition to being the harbour of the most expensive real estate in Nigeria, Lekki remains the only place in the world where real estate had appreciated by 100 per cent before the global meltdown.
He said, “The first ship ran ashore. At the time it should have been tolled into the sea, the relevant authority did not do it. It needs to be cut into pieces to be removed and this will be very costly”.
Every month, several million naira worth of prime real estate is being lost to the sea. We are afraid that in the near future, if this attitude of dumping ships in our coastal marine environment is not checked, we will be at the risk of losing many estates and infrastructure in Lekki.
The Ministry of Transportation, through the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, is charged with the responsibility of maintaining the Nigerian waterways. Its management is currently being investigated by the anti graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, after the National Assembly said the agency misappropriated public fund in its operations.
The Nigerian coast appears to be the dumping ground for old and end-of-life foreign ships due to lapses in the country’s maritime system, said NCF’s Technical Programmes Director, Mr. Alade Adeleke.
Adeleke noted that NIMASA ought to have known about the new ship, which was wrecked two weeks ago.
As an agency responsible for the waterways, NIMASA ought to know the owners of the ship and have other information needed to take action concerning the removal of the ship,” he said.
Although the Lagos State Government, through the Ministry of Waterfront and Infrastructure, has been working hard, Majekodunmi said its effort would not be enough to remove the wrecks as heavy equipment is needed to execute the task.
While calling on the Ministry of Transportation to treat the matter with the needed urgency, Majekodunmi advised that it would be easier and cheaper to remove the ship now that it had not sunk in the sand.
Such things as this don’t happen in many places around the world. In Holland, the government gives 24 hours after which the defaulter would be arrested and it will become a national emergency,” Majekodunmi said.
Source: Punch
