The problem of open and poorly constructed/connected drainage systems is not peculiar to Lagos but to all of Nigeria. It is dangerous, unsightly and shows a lack of foresight on the part of government urban planners. I have always been particularly disturbed by our collective nonchalance toward issues pertaining to proper and efficient waste and sewage disposal. I continue to weep for my people.

It's a very complex problem. Apart from the huge cost, there may be the problem of the practicability of covering some of the drains. I suspect if some drains are covered, it may lead to flooding (I'm not an engineer so maybe wrong).

Also, it's extremely important for government to start a war against litter and also against pure water.

The continuous blockage is mainly due to litter and reckless littering. Enough public waste disposal bins but be available for people to throw their thrash in. Also, punishment should be handed out to those who run foul of anti-litter laws.

The proper disposal of litter will go a long in reducing the frequency in which the drains get blocked. Litter is the prime culprit with lots of plastics and nylons especially

This is why Nigeria is regarded as a shithole. Gutter system is a backward system, there is no how you won't get those kind of images with gutters whether open or closed.

What we need is an underground drainage system like we have in developed world. But I think Nigeria will have to wait till the next 100 years before we get something close to it

Rossikk:


YOU'RE WRONG.

YOU DON'T WAIT FOR ALL YOUR ROADS TO BE TARRED BEFORE YOU COVER YOUR DRAINS AND BUILD SIDEWALKS FOR PEDESTRIANS. I'M STUNNED BY YOUR SUGGESTION.

I have reasons for saying that, come to delta state and see for yourself what is happening to the sealed drainages built by Uduagha..believe it or not, the stage we are now, with the common mentality of disposing waste indiscriminately, we do not need sealed drainages . We 'll get there someday...sidewalks is a different thing entirely, I'm not against that ....

When the time comes NIGERIANS will understand PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY!!!!

Europe, Japan and all the developed countries are the way they are because of the CITIZENS!!!

A Japanese, British, American, German man or woman will NEVER throw dirt on his/her street. Imagine if Nigerian stop throwing their dirt on the street or in the drainage?

We are worthless animals I swear!

AJ10:
This citizens failure on their part.
it has nothing to do with Govt

chai we lack maintenance culture in Nigeria. we cant even take of our environment something that will affect our health

WRONG. Dude, YOU NEED TO BUILD YOUR STREETS WITH COVERED DRAINS AND SIDEWALKS!!!!!!

Then ''citizens'' will simply walk along the road like you see those guys in the picture below. There wil be no where to throw the trash except in a bin. Even if they throw it on the road, all you'll need to do is sweep the streets every night with sweeper trucks.

You don't build a road with open drains and no sidewalks and expect everywhere to look nice!!!!!

Rossikk:
Where is the open gutter here?

Until we start to build our streets like THIS, with sidewalks and covered drains, we will continue to be a JOKE, and our cities dirty, stinking eyesores which no tourist in their right mind would visit.

MADE BY THE CITIZENS! NOT THE GOVERNMENT!!

AlhajaChinyere:


MADE BY THE CITIZENS! NOT THE GOVERNMENT!!

The GOVERNMENT built the road that way, not the citizens. What the hell are you on about?

the plastic bottle water, coke,limka,pepsi,pure water.coy shud be held responsible to clean/pack it or risk ban.They drink same bottle wota/pepsi abroad oo,we neva see dis type there

Mrkumareze:


I have reasons for saying that, come to delta state and see for yourself what is happening to the sealed drainages built by Uduagha..believe it or not, the stage we are now, with the common mentality of disposing waste indiscriminately, we do not need sealed drainages . We 'll get there someday...sidewalks is a different thing entirely, I'm not against that ....

He did not build the 'sealed drainages' well. When built properly, you are not even supposed to know there's a drainage system under your feet.

In the picture below, can anyone tamper with any drainage? There is drainage running right alongside the road, between the asphalt and the sidewalk. Every few yards they build an iron vent on it so the drain can be accessed by workers if need be.



This has NOTHING to do with pedestrians or the public. It is all about how the govt builds the road.

..........Ajumose gbogbo wa ni

Did sanwolu made it like that...

The world's filt capital

Saintp:
This is why Nigeria is regarded as a shithole. Gutter system is a backward system, there is no how you won't get those kind of images with gutters whether open or closed.

What we need is an underground drainage system like we have in developed world. But I think Nigeria will have to wait till the next 100 years before we get something close to it

You don't know what you're talking about. 'Underground drainage' is the same thing as covered drains.

In the picture below, the drains are simply covered by the asphalt, with periodic vents placed to access the drain if required.

It's not 'underground' It's just covered. We actually have a lot of this type of drainage/sidewalk in Nigeria. It's found mostly in Abuja and parts of Victoria Island and Ikeja. But it should be on EVERY street, not just a few. It should be the NORM.

.....................

AutoJoshNIG:
Lagos state is a major gateway into Nigeria. Most visitors to the country come in through the state. 

Thus, the first impression that most international visitors behold of Nigeria is provided by Lagos state.

Sadly, an uncomplimentary sight that greets visitors to Nigeria is the ubiquitous sights of open and dirty drainages all over Lagos state. For decades, open and dirty drainages have been a prominent feature of roads and streets in Nigeria's commercial capital.





Successive governments in Lagos state – despite the enormous fiscal resources at their disposal – have failed to eradicate this outdated infrastructure.

Since the return of democracy in 1999,  successive administrations in the state have been actively pursuing an agenda to achieve the status of a world-class metropolis. Sadly, the sight of open drainages makes a huge joke of this ambition.




No city in the world that sincerely desires to be taken seriously leaves its drainage system exposed, to the extent that the inhabitants now use them as alternatives to refuse dumps.

Lagos state is considered as the 7th biggest economy in Africa.

Come May 29th, Lagos state will have a new governor.

Will Babajide Sanwo-Olu offer a solution to this long term failure of governance in Lagos?

Only time will tell.







Source:

https://autojosh.com/will-sanwo-olu-rescue-lagos-from-the-disgrace-of-open-and-dirty-drainage-system/

you, @AutoJosh, are the biggest thing happening in Nigeria right now! please continue with your watch on our infradtructures in Nigeria especially in Lagos. and please show the good and bad sides. be rotating it so that no one thinks you are being partisan. gradually, expand to other parts of the country too. and before you know it, you would have played a big role in turning around the country infrastructurally; because when people become more infrastructure aware, the leaders will have no other choice but to imptove things, just as political platforn ob raypower has helped in deeping our democracy by making people more conscious of politics

Rossikk:


He did not build the 'sealed drainages' well. When built properly, you are not even supposed to know there's a drainage system under your feet.

In the picture below, can anyone tamper with any drainage? There is drainage running right alongside the road, between the asphalt and the sidewalk. Every few yards they build an iron vent on it so the drain can be accessed by workers if need be.



This has NOTHING to do with pedestrians or the public. It is all about how the govt builds the road.

We 're in Nigeria bro. It's even a big task to clean the open drainage here not to talk of the sealed ones ... from the pic u don't need anyone to tell you how clean d environment is ... have you ever seen clean water when it rains in Nigeria There in developed nations, when it rains the water that passes through those drainages are much better than some waters we use here in naija.. so let get our roads tarred n clean up our bad habit of disposing waste wrongly, by then we can build sealed drainages...if u dare seal those drainages posted by Op, d entire road 'll be flooded

Rossikk:


The GOVERNMENT built the road that way, not the citizens. What the hell are you on about?

Lets use our head Bruv.

Without personal and individual responsibilities no society can advance or grow. I witness the attempts (expensive and quite elaborate) by Lagos state government to control traffic and stop our people from driving like deranged animals. Did it work? At what costs? Are we not dealing with the same issues.
In the environment you displayed, the government just have to say what it wants on radio and the responsible citizen will follow suit. In the jungle called Nigeria (and the animals called citizens) will never follow government guidelines or rules.

Let us use our head Bruv.

Bustincole:
Sanwo Eko have a lot of jobs to do....


lets see how it goes... the 1st 100 days in office


den we will judge from dare

The citizens have a lot of responsibilities - social, communal and personal responsibilities! if NOT oga please forget it.

The government alone cannot do it..........

Mrkumareze:


We 're in Nigeria bro. It's even a big task to clean the open drainage here not to talk of the sealed ones ... from the pic u don't need anyone to tell you how clean d environment is ... have you ever seen clean water when it rains in Nigeria There in developed nations, when it rains the water that passes through those drainages are much better than some waters we use here in naija.. so let get our roads tarred n clean up our bad habit of disposing waste wrongly, by then we can build sealed drainages...if u dare seal those drainages posted by Op, d entire road 'll be flooded

Again, you are WRONG. This has NOTHING to do with the citizens. When you build a road with a proper, covered drainage system and sidewalks, there is NO ROOM for abuse by the public. It will not be blocked because they is no public access to the drains.

............................


Those vents are placed every few yards to take in road water and just in case there is a blockage and access is needed to clear it. But the vents are rarely opened because the drains are rarely ever 'blocked', since there's no public access.

Rossikk:


Again, you are WRONG. Thus has NOTHING to do with the citizens. When you build a road with a proper, covered drainage system, there is NO ROOM for abuse by the public. It will not be blocked because they is nop public access to it.

YOU ARE WRONG - THE CITIZENS ARE TO BLAME!!!!

You are making excuses for the irresponsible citizens of this country. The government of any country or society can only be successful if the citizens play their part. Where exactly do you expect the government to find the money to build all these great stuff when the citizens themselves refuse to pay tax!!!!

Look at the gutters well......did the government discard all those water bottles, the plastics and the debris in the gutter? Shebi we have to start from somewhere....

Rossikk:


Again, you are WRONG. Thus has NOTHING to do with the citizens. When you build a road with a proper, covered drainage system and sidewalks, there is NO ROOM for abuse by the public. It will not be blocked because they is no public access to the drains.

............................

some roads in Lagos and Abuja have totally cover drainages. Ajose in VI, the streets in CBD CMS broad street et al. awolowo way in Ikeja.

people steal those metals

AlhajaChinyere:


Lets use our head Bruv.

Without personal and individual responsibilities no society can advance or grow. I witness the attempts (expensive and quite elaborate) by Lagos state government to control traffic and stop our people from driving like deranged animals. Did it work? At what costs? Are we not dealing with the same issues.
In the environment you displayed, the government just have to say what it wants on radio and the responsible citizen will follow suit. In the jungle called Nigeria (and the animals called citizens) will never follow government guidelines or rules.

Let us use our head Bruv.

You're talking RUBBISH. Build the roads PROPERLY and stop complaining.

Why has Abuja not turned to Ajegunle, since they have this modern system there? Since it is Nigerians that live there?

Quit making excuses abeg.

MiddleDimension:
some roads in Lagos and Abuja have totally cover drainages. Ajose in VI, the streets in CBD CMS broad street et al. awolowo way in Ikeja.

people steal those metals

Because most Nigerians are irresponsible god forsaken citizens.......

MiddleDimension:
some roads in Lagos and Abuja have totally cover drainages. Ajose in VI, the streets in CBD CMS broad street et al. awolowo way in Ikeja.

people steal those metals

Build them in such a way that they cannot be stolen!!! We no get brain??

Rossikk:


Again, you are WRONG. Thus has NOTHING to do with the citizens. When you build a road with a proper, covered drainage system and sidewalks, there is NO ROOM for abuse by the public. It will not be blocked because they is no public access to the drains.

............................

You don't know the ratio of sand that passes through our drainages ... would have bn better I u can give me examples of sealed drainages in Nigeria...I base in abroad so I know why n how they succeed with such drainages u post here

AlhajaChinyere:



YOU ARE WRONG - THE CITIZENS ARE TO BLAME!!!!

You are making excuses for the irresponsible citizens of this country. The government of any country or society can only be successful if the citizens play their part. Where exactly do you expect the government to find the money to build all these great stuff when the citizens themselves refuse to pay tax!!!!

So MONEY is now the problem? Sorry. Not buying that. If we can build all these huge edifices and transport systems like Oshodi interchange and BRT, Railways, huge airport terminals, flyovers etc, we can build covered drains and sidewalks on our streets.

Rossikk:


You're talking RUBBISH. Build the roads PROPERLY and stop complaining.

Why has Abuja not turned to Ajegunle, since they have this modern system there? Since it is Nigerians that live there?

Quit making excuses abeg.

You are talking bigger RUBBISH!

Central Abuja is not Lagos and many Nigerians have effectively been banished from Abuja. Lagos is a truer representation of the average day-to-day Nigerian people. It is the citizen's problem. Why did I say that? Because I lived in Europe for at least a decade.

Mrkumareze:

You don't know the ratio of sand that passes through our drainages ... would have bn better I u can give me examples of sealed drainages in Nigeria...I base in abroad so I know why n how they succeed with such drainages u post here

Sand ke? Where does the sand come from? Is it not from other poorly built road systems and open drains? A well built system has no ''sand'' running through it. Abuja has this modern system. Sand has not disturbed anything. Your point is baseless.

AlhajaChinyere:


You are talking bigger RUBBISH!

Central Abuja is not Lagos and many Nigerians have effectively been banished from Abuja. Lagos is a truer representation of the average day-to-day Nigerian people. It is the citizen's problem. Why did I say that? Because I lived in Europe for at least a decade.

You lived in Europe for a decade and you still come here supporting OPEN DRAINS and NO SIDEWALKS?

In what European city did you see that?

Why did you bother going abroad at all? You should have just remained in your village where you really belong.

Rossikk:


So MONEY is now the problem? Sorry. Not buying that. If we can build all these huge edifices and transport systems like Oshodi interchange and BRT, Railways etc, we can build covered drains and sidewalks on our streets.

There is a reason Nigeria has no progressed for 60 years or so.

I will (because I am intelligent, knowledgeable and exposed) resoundingly put the blame on the citizens of the country.

Very irresponsible lot, and that is why I have stopped feeling their pain and anguish. They will wilfully have children they know for sure they can never bring up properly or do not have the means to bring up. Yet they will turn round to cry government government government.

You can all continue living in misery and pain, refusing to understand the roles citizens play in developing their own society and country.

AlhajaChinyere:


There is a reason Nigeria has no progressed for 60 years or so.

Nigeria HAS progressed considerably in the last 60 years. At independence we we had no power stations, expressways, or universities, and there was mass illiteracy, poverty and malnutrition. We have come a long way since then, even though we still have a long way to go.

I will (because I am intelligent, knowledgeable and exposed) resoundingly put the blame on the citizens of the country.

Very irresponsible lot, and that is why I have stopped feeling their pain and anguish. They will wilfully have children they know for sure they can never bring up properly or do not have the means to bring up. Yet they will turn round to cry government government government.

You can all continue living in misery and pain, refusing to understand the roles citizens play in developing their own society and country.

Blaming the citizens for the government's failure to build proper roads is madness.