Why is the flood in Lagos not "going away"? Ignorance or Apathy?

Lagos is flooded. Yesterday it took me some three hours to get home from school. A journey that takes thirty minutes, if not less. Everywhere was blocked! Traffic, flood, more flood!!

Since it is raining season, we have all programmed our minds to spend more hours on the FLOODED road these days.

It is incredible how we forget what raining season is like in this part of the world until it swings by. Or until the media remind us with reports about a house collapsing here or motorists stranded there.

"Two die as floods paralyse Lagos" the Punch newspaper reported today. But these kind of reports... do they still have the same level of impact? Because as soon as the raining season is over, we all forget the agony the season brought and move on with our unhealthy culture of littering the street, blocking the drainage directly or indirectly.

As usual, there are those blaming the government for failing to be proactive in carrying out their responsibilities-- including failing to build good drainage system. There are those calling on the government leaders to rescue them from flooded streets. BUT then, when are we, as individuals, going to start taking responsibility?

For a start, stop littering your corner. Stop building houses without a proper drainage plan. Construct those gutters well on your street!

This fire brigade approach to solving challenges in our society is not sustainable. Prevention they say, is better than flood cure! If you want to have a peace of mind during the raining season, then plan well from the dry season.

  

The border between Lagos and Ogun State