Lagos State governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Thursday met with the leadership of the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) to discuss measures being taken towards alleviating hardship faced by Ijegun residents over the activities of cluster oil depots in the area. The meeting, held at the Lagos House in Marina, was aimed at bringing lasting relief to residents living around the vulnerable areas hosting oil tank farms and depots belonging to the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).
The Thursday discussion was a follow-up to an informal meeting between the state government and the DPR leadership, following bitter agitations by Ijegun residents whose livelihoods were affected by the perennial traffic gridlock resulting from the operations of the oil tank farms.
The governor said the need to assuage the hardship faced by agitated residents led to the move to spearhead a joint action by the state government, DPR and operators of the oil tank farms, which must focus on bringing about lasting relief to the area. Sanwo-Olu said meetings would not be enough assurance to convince the Ijegun residents on the planned efforts to bring succour; he added that the state government and DPR leadership needed to prevent more agitation by physically visiting and meeting the residents to make definitive commitment.