Residents of an estate in Lagos are living in fear due to the construction of a filling station owned by a member of the Lagos State House of Assembly. The filling station, which is located in close proximity to Gladys Primary School and the residential estates of Irawo Osan, Omotayo, and Idowu Layemo, has raised concerns among the local community.
Construction on the filling station began in 2018, catching the residents by surprise as they expected it to be a different type of development. Despite objections from the residents, the lawmaker, who owns the filling station, allegedly used his political influence to continue with the project.
The residents, who consider the construction of a filling station in a densely populated residential area to be a safety hazard, have been actively opposing the project. They argue that the presence of a church, a medical facility, a school, and numerous houses makes the location unsuitable for a filling station.
The community has petitioned the government multiple times, seeking intervention to halt the construction. However, their efforts have been met with resistance, and the filling station’s construction continues, drawing closer to completion.
Residents have cited concerns about the potential health and environmental risks posed by the filling station. They argue that the community already has two filling stations and a gas station, making another fuel station unnecessary and dangerous.
In 2020, residents organized protests to halt construction, but work resumed after a brief pause. The community has also sought legal recourse to stop the project, filing a lawsuit against the lawmaker and relevant authorities.
The lawsuit aims to prevent the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (formerly the Department of Petroleum Resources) from issuing permits for the storage and sale of petroleum products at the filling station until the matter is resolved in court.
Despite the court’s restraining order against further construction in a residential area, residents claim that work on the filling station continues, especially at night.
Efforts to contact the lawmaker and relevant authorities for comment have been met with limited success. While an aide to the lawmaker stated that work on the site had stopped since 2020, residents maintain that the construction is ongoing. The community remains determined to protect their safety and well-being, continuing their fight against the controversial filling station project.