Lagos State Government has charged residents to complement its effort at cleaning primary and secondary channels by cleaning tertiary drains that run across residences.
The state Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tunji Bello, said the government always ensured the cleaning, clearing and dredging of all major collectors to facilitate effective discharge.
Speaking against the background of the heavy rainfall experienced in Lagos last week, he said a change of attitude was desired from the residents to prevent flash flooding.
The commissioner, in a statement, added that the nonchalant attitude of some residents was slowing successes recorded in flood control by the government.
He said regrettably, even commercial concerns and companies were also guilty of not cleaning their drains, but would rather leave them, waiting for the government to undertake the task.
He added that investigations by officials of the ministry in the state after the last rainfall revealed that flash floods occurred as most tertiary drains were blocked with refuse, thus spewing water onto the roads.
Bello said the people should realise that it portends dangers when tertiary drains are littered with refuse as this could bring about unexpected destruction and fatalities. He asked local council administrators to punish errant residents.
The commissioner added that part of what could be done was to increase the number of environmental health officers to monitor the drains regularly.
