Seeks larger budget to bridge infrastructure gaps
By Olasunkanmi Akoni
LAGOS — Lagos State Deputy Governor, Dr Obafemi Hamzat, has said the state has spent more than N700 billion on road rehabilitation over the past 15 years, stressing that a significantly larger budget is required to meet its growing infrastructure needs.
Hamzat disclosed this on Monday during an interview with a radio station in Lagos, noting that the state’s rapidly growing population had continued to place enormous pressure on existing infrastructure.
He said the government was investing heavily in transportation, housing, healthcare, education and other critical sectors, but available resources remained inadequate compared with the scale of the challenges.
On road infrastructure, Hamzat said the Lagos State Public Works Corporation had expanded its maintenance operations to ensure wider coverage across the state.
According to him, “The Lagos State Public Works Corporation carries out routine maintenance of roads across the state. We used to have 14 maintenance gangs, but we have increased them to 34 teams of engineers that go around Lagos identifying and rehabilitating bad portions of roads.
“Today, we have about 9,911 roads across the state, and all of them require regular maintenance.”
The deputy governor said the cost of rehabilitating roads had risen substantially, adding that the state required more resources to keep pace with its infrastructure demands.
He also cited the proposed Fourth Mainland Bridge, which he said had remained on the government’s agenda but required substantial financial resources for its development.
Hamzat stressed that road construction in Lagos must be integrated with drainage and flood-control measures because of the state’s low-lying terrain and environmental challenges.
“When we do roads in Lagos, we are not just moving vehicles; we are moving water. For example, in New York, there is a lot of water just as we have it in Lagos, but they were able to control it. Lagos must not sink. We must look into our drainage to ensure that there is no overflow,” he said.
He said the government must consider the sources and discharge points of water and ensure that adequate drainage channels were provided to prevent flooding and other disasters.
Hamzat added that developing Lagos’ infrastructure was not only about funding but also about building the technical capacity of professionals who understand the peculiarities of the state.
He also dismissed the perception that government development efforts were concentrated in areas such as Lekki and Ajah, saying the administration had deliberately spread projects across the state.
“There is no local government that we haven’t touched. However, the resources available to the government remain inadequate compared with the scale of infrastructure needs across Lagos,” he said.
On housing, Hamzat said Lagos needed to develop an effective mortgage system that would give ordinary residents a realistic opportunity to own homes.
He noted that the difficulty many families faced in completing housing projects often affected their ability to meet other household needs, including paying school fees.
He said sustainable housing solutions should therefore go beyond constructing buildings to developing financing mechanisms that would make home ownership more accessible to residents.
Addressing the state’s housing deficit, Hamzat said the challenge facing Lagos today was different from what obtained during the administration of the late Governor Lateef Jakande, when the state had a smaller population and more land available for housing estates and schools.
He explained that rapid population growth and increasing pressure on available land had made housing development more challenging for successive administrations.
Speaking ahead of the 2027 governorship election, Hamzat, who is the APC governorship candidate, pledged to leverage his years of experience in government to advance development across the state.
He said greater attention would be given to healthcare, infrastructure, housing, education and other sectors that directly affect residents.
Hamzat, who has served as Commissioner for Science and Technology, Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure and Deputy Governor, said his years in public service had given him first-hand knowledge of Lagos’ challenges and the experience required to address them.
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