Lagos State government has honoured Emeka Anyaoku, former secretary-general of the Commonwealth, by naming the Ikeja Millennium Housing Estate, which was commissioned recently, after him.
Governor Babatunde Fashola in his key note address at the commissioning ceremony explained that the honour was in recognition of Anyaoku’s immense contribution to the development of the Nigerian society.
Bosun Jeje, the state commissioner for housing, disclosed that the estate located in the highbrow Ikeja GRA “has 76 units of bedroom masonettes consisting of nine blocks of eight units each and a block of seven units.”
According to him, the development of the estate is part of government’s determination to bridge the housing demand-supply gap in the state.
“Security of lives and property in the estate is guaranteed and other self-serving and complementary infrastructure such as well paved road network, mini water works, car parks, electricity and landscaped environment are already in place for the estate residents,” the commissioner said.
To him, the completion of the estate is another milestone in the commitment of the state government to the provision of decent and affordable housing for the residents, saying it was quite challenging constructing the estate as a result of the state of the soil, as the location was, before now, a refuse dump.
“The top soil was very loose and had high concentration of degradable materials upon which no enduring structure can be placed; therefore several soil tests were conducted as layers of the soil were removed to ascertain the sustainability of the land for this housing purpose before it commenced,” he said.
He added that the desire to provide decent accommodation for Lagos residents propelled government to face these challenges by importing soil to replace the excavated top soil and also deliver this project within a short period of time.
The commissioner commended the state governor for his passion, innovative idea, support and dedication to ensure timely delivery of the project.
Anyaoku, who commissioned the estate, commended the state for the great innovative idea and the desire to complete the project within a short period of time, thanking the state for such honour and privilege.
ODINAKA MBONU
