Lagos not proactive on flood management, says Rhodes-Vivour

Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 Lagos governorship election, says the state government has not been proactive on flood management.

Most of Lagos was submerged on Wednesday following a downpour — the latest flood episode to ravage a densely populated and thrumming metropolis. 

Speaking on the Morning Show, a Channels Television programme, on Thursday, Rhodes-Vivour faulted the Lagos government’s flood and disaster management efforts. 

He advised the government to initiate wetland protection policies that would mitigate and manage the impact of annual flood. 

“What is more painful to me is that I see a government that is in your face and very active when it comes to demolition but you have this kind of thing (flood) you don’t see any emergency response or protocol,” he said.

“We are not seeing men on the ground. We are not seeing intelligence being given out early: ‘avoid these routes’. There were no diversions.

“I don’t feel a sense of ‘I told you so’. Anybody who loves Lagos well enough and has looked at the history of Lagos would see these things way before they happen.

“Which is why it is very painful to see the government pass the buck to the citizens when they have no forward planning or when they show no empathy for the destruction that happens to Lagosians every year.

“We need a wetland protection policy. Wetlands are nature’s sinkholes and indiscriminate sandfilling is pushing water away and the city has to deal with it.

“We also need to address this issue with a forward-thinking mindset by bringing in innovations like the flood protection canal in Japan.

“We cannot just be talking about gutters anymore. We need to have a well-managed mechanised hydronic system.”