Emissions: Lagos govt seals firm

Residents of Jerico Police Barracks and Oto community in the Ijora Badia area of Lagos State have expressed their joy over the sealing up of an asphalt producing company in the neighbourhood, Righteous Construction Company Nigeria Limited.
The firm was shut recently by the state government after a newspaper reported on the health problems faced by the residents as a result of the fumes they inhaled from the company’s plant.
The dwellers urged the state government to relocate the company or ensure that the emissions were properly channeled to avoid putting their health at risk.
Residents, especially children, suffered from health challenges ranging from breathing difficulty and chest pain, to cough and eye problems.
They also lamented that particles from the emissions escaped into their apartments and contaminated their water and food.
The Lagos State ministries of health and the environment had visited the company on fact-finding missions and the latter ordered the firm on Wednesday to stop production.
On Thursday around 12pm, officials from the environment ministry returned to the area and sealed up the firm to the delight of residents, who rejoiced that years of health challenges posed by the emissions was over.
A former councilor in the area, Mr. Akeem Esuruoso, said the sealing had brought a relief to the community.
He said, “Since the company stopped working, we have beem relieved. If the government cannot prevail on the company to regulate the emissions so that we will not be affected, it should be relocated.”
Another resident, Dauda Sanusi, said his family had endured three years of being “between life and death,” adding that he was happy the government intervened.
An executive member of the Oto Community Development Association, Ahmed Alade, also lauded the development.
He said, “The firm had polluted the entire community; no quality air to inhale. What happened today (Wednesday) is fantastic; I am short of words. We just wanted the operation to stop. The entire community is grateful.”