From Ayodele Samuel, Lagos
Lagos state Governor, Babatunde Fashola yesterday blamed some residents for delay in projects delivery in the state.
Fashola pointing out diverse challenges facing the government in delivering projects, noted that residents have allowed private interest to override public interest in the state, lamenting “this impede the state government’s effort to deliver projects that would improve the standard of life.”
He also lamented the challenges encountered by the state in project delivery while commissioning projects in the Lagos West senatorial district of the state.
According to Fashola “Last night, I got a report that some group of residents have gone to seek court order to stop the state government from building ferry terminal in Osborne.
“This was the ferry terminal that is almost completed. And the court without hearing the state argument, the court gave injunction that the contractor should leave the site.
“I think that we will continue to have this issue in a democratic system to balance the interest of few people against million others.
“We were trying to build pedestrian bridge at Iyana-Ipaja axis of the state, a resident took the state government to court, and alleged that the users of the bridge will be looking into his house,” he added.
Fashola said “These were some of the challenges that we face in trying to deliver dividend of democracy in the state.
On these two projects, the governor stated that residents had been waiting for the state government to urgently complete the project.
Fashola urged residents, saying “It isn’t just the state government or the court but we must refrain in understanding the necessary balance between the public and private right.
“All over the world, private rights are always yielded for public interest. For instance, the owners of this site (Agege Transfer Loading Station), that we sit in was formerly a refuse dump site. But the owners allowed public interest to override private interest.”
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