The president’s message of felicitation was announced on Saturday in a statement by his media aide, Mr. Bayo Onanuga.

He said Tinubu joined Bishop Okonkwo’s family, church members, and the Body of Christ to celebrate the milestone.

He said the president believed the visionary stewardship of the presiding bishop of TREM had fostered peace and harmony, promoted education, improved healthcare, and inspired economic empowerment across the nation and beyond.

Said Tinubu: “As a respected leader, mentor, and advocate for the downtrodden, Bishop Okonkwo’s commitment to lifting the underprivileged and upholding harmony and the unity of the country reflects the fundamental values of Nigeria.

“His discipline, dedication, and unwavering faith in God continue to shape our society’s moral and social fabric and inspire a new generation of spiritual leaders.

“May God continue to bless him with good health, strength, and wisdom as he carries the gospel worldwide. I pray that Bishop Okonkwo’s exemplary humility and simplicity will inspire the current and future generations to pursue lives of service, leadership, and dedication to humanity. Happy 80th birthday, Your Eminence.”

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The Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Mr. Tokunbo Wahab, made this call after an inspection tour to some enforcement sites and some on going project sites.

He stated that the state was determined to put a stop to the growing challenge of wetland encroachment.

He said wetlands were natural habitations whose value could not be replaced by money as such it was essential to do more to preserve nature and protect the wetlands from further encroachment as it was recently being experienced in most parts of the state.

Accompanied by the Special Adviser on Environment Mr. Olakunle Rotimi-Akodu, Permanent Secretaries, Office of Environmental Services, Gaji Omobolaji and Drainage Services, Engr Mahamood Adegbite, and directors in  the ministry, the team visited TREM drainage channel located at Anthony Oke, Oshodi Expressway  observing that the wetland in the areas had been encroached upon and the major portion of the  drainage channel had been blocked with a major private estate being developed on the location.

Wahab directed the immediate sealing up of a proposed private estate site named Maverick Estate which is still at the inception stage, ordering all construction workers to leave the site immediately.

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He ordered that the fences of the proposed Estate on the wetland be pulled down urging the developer of Maverick Estate to come forward with appropriate land approval, Environmental and Social Impact Assessment, ESIA, and drainage approval amongst other documents.

Wahab emphasized that several of the wetlands  across the state such as places like  Iju, Ejigbo, Badagry, Ikorodu, Itoikin and many more which had been encroached upon for estate development “without due consideration for environmental guidelines would be reclaimed by the government as time goes on.”

The team also visited System 1 drainage channel which is the most critical because it defloods Odo Iya Alaro; Ojota; Ogudu; Maryland amongst others to check the extent of the ongoing project awarded by the state two years ago in order to establish the Right of Way and address major flooding issues on the mainland.

The commissioner reiterated that global warming was real as exemplified by the flooding incidents being experienced in the North East and West especially in Borno State in the last few days.

He urged residents to collaborate with the government to sustain restoration of drainage Right of Way and wetlands in the state.

According to him, the world has changed and everyone must put  in place various measures to mitigate the adverse effects of global warming and other environmental issues confronting human existence.

The Special Adviser on Environment, Mr Olakunle Rotimi-Akodu implored all residents of the state to desist from the acts of using refuse to reclaim wetlands or dumping of waste in drainage channels adding that the joint efforts of the people with the government would curb the incidents of flooding to barest minimum in the state.

He added that the government would continue to scale up its awareness for communities within proximity of wetlands and all residents on the importance of wetlands to humanity.

The team visited System 1 (Sheraton-Ojota link bridge section); Peace Estate, Ifako (System 1 mainstream) and TREM drainage channel (discharges into Anthony Oke Channel) Oshodi Expressway.

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