Ogun Physical Planing Min. to Curtail Illegal Structure, Creates New Towns

The Ogun State Ministry of Urban and Physical Planning has assured that it would not relent in its effort at ensuring that the State witnesses more urban renewal programmes capable of attracting more investors into the State in the next fiscal year.

 

In this wise, the Ministry has concluded plans to curtail indiscriminate urban sprawl along the Lagos- Ibadan expressway through strict compliance with the master, structure and local development plans of the State.

 

Commissioner for Urban and Physical Planning, Mr. Gbenga Otenuga who stated all this while defending the 2014 budget estimate before members of the State House of Assembly, pointed out that the ministry plans to spend the sum of N750m as total expenditure for the next fiscal year

 

A breakdown of the budget estimate by Otenuga showed that N450m would be spent on capital projects, while N300m was earmarked for personnel and overhead under recurrent expenditure; just as the total receipt for the period was N700m.

 

According to him, preparation and execution of master plan for the Lagos- Ibadan expressway corridor alongside the State Capital, Ijebu-Ode, Ota, Sagamu and Ilaro would also be done next year.

 

He disclosed that N80 million would be spent on special projects across the State to provide for structures, area plans and resettlement schemes on government acquired lands, adding that all these intervention programmes were meant to ensure sanity and planning for environmental sustainability.

 

Defending the budget estimate of Urban and Regional Planning Board for the same period, Otenuga stated that in 2014, the body would strive to reduce the resurgence of illegal 6,000 structures and shanties across the State by 90 percent.

 

He also promised speedy approval of building plans within 14 days for simple application and 21 days for major application.

 

To achieve these goals among others, he said the sum of N331.2m was budgeted as total expenditure for the year, out of which N130m was meant for capital, while N201.2m would go for recurrent expenditure with N1.7b total receipt expected for the period.