The Lagos State Government in a stern operation has sealed up a popular hotel around Agric area of Ikorodu Local Government over illegal and criminal activities. It also shut the popular ponmo (animal skin) processing section of the Oko-Oba Abattoir and Lairage Complex, Agege over health concerns.
It will be recalled that in the renewed war against upsurge in criminal activities, Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, few days ago vowed to impound any building or property found to be harbouring suspected militants, pipeline vandals and other criminals in the state.
The Governor in a statement on Sunday, through Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Steve Ayorinde, said: “We urge members of the public not to allow any building to be used to harbor criminals or serve as a base for criminal activities.
Recent security investigations in the Ikorodu area of the state have revealed that the hotel has been associated with illegal and criminal activities and the Lagos State government has accordingly decided to seal up the hotel until further notice.
Government will immediately reinforce the presence of security agents in and around Ikorodu axis to further reassure residents of the determination of the government to safeguard lives and properties in the area.”
In Agege, the government through the Commissioner for Agriculture, Mr. Toyin Suarau, who led a team of the ministry officials and men of the Lagos State Task Force to Oko-Oba Abattoir and Lairage Complex, said the closure became necessary because of the health hazard posed by activities of the processors who burnt cow skin with tyres.
Suarua explained: “I wish to make it clear that that the use of tyres for cow skin processing has been reported to the state government sometimes ago and has been dealt with but the return to this unhygienic method of processing in the complex leaves much to be desired.
This is why this section of the complex had to be closed. ”The activities of these ‘Ponmo’ processors constitute a health risk not only to inhabitants of the complex but to residents of adjoining communities and to the processors themselves.
According to her, the health effect of burning tyres alone are enormous let alone it use in the processing of human food. “Burning tyres releases a toxic soup of pollutants with hundreds of the different toxic pollutants and tremendous number of small particles settling deep in the lungs while airborne emissions from open tire fires have long been suspected of representing a serious impact to health and the environment.”
-Emmanuel Ikechukwu
