Commercial, set backs users for parking must operate within the law- Lagos govt

IBRAHIM QUADRI

Lagos State Government on Wednesday said operators of commercial and users of set backs for parking must operate within the spate of the law in the State, saying its levies are legal and it is not out for extortion.

The State Commissioner for Transportation, Frederic Oladeinde made the clarification during a briefing in Ikeja.

A post had been circulated on social media, stating that Lagos State Parking Authority, LASPA issued a letter signed by its General Manager, levying a Lekki-based company a total sum of N290,000 for the parking lot outside their premises.

The government explained that contrary to the claims, LASPA, the government has the power by law to collect park levies.

The Commissioner noted that the Agency was created to find lasting solutions to the issues of indiscriminate and illegal parking across the state.

He added that with legal operation of LASPA, it would aid prompt reduction of traffic gridlock experienced by everyone, saying that Lagosians should cooperate with the agency and other similar stakeholders.

Oladeinde said,  “As it is usually the case, especially in a political season, political jobbers and people with limited knowledge on the constitutional mandates of LASPA have tried fruitlessly to exaggerate the issue by playing to the gallery.

“LASPA was created to find lasting solutions to the issues of indiscriminate and illegal parking across the state. This will aid prompt reduction of traffic gridlock experienced by everyone. We, thus, enjoin Lagosians to cooperate with the agency and other similar stakeholders in carrying out its laudable mandate.

“The agency was established, among others, to promote parking policies tailored to suit the peculiarity of the State in line with modern international standards towards achieving a smart city.

” LASPA is also empowered to remove all impediments arising from indiscriminate parking on carriageways, thereby increasing the carriageway capacity on the roads, improving the flow of traffic and reducing travel time.

“First on our mandate is to improve the parking culture. We also believe that the establishment of the Authority also enables employment opportunities for the youths. In doing so, it is expected that revenue generation will come naturally.

“We have the mandate to charge fees on private commercial parks, non-commercial parks and other parking lots on any facility provided by the Authority.

“Let me emphasize that most private commercial parks charge the Lagosians between N500 to N1,000 parking dues per hour and each person parking at these respective parks can have 4 stop over which sums up to N2,000 or N4,000 daily.

“At the end of the year, the commercial park owner will realize over N182,500 or N365,000 if charges is per hour or gain a total N730,000 or N1,460,000 for 4 stopovers. This is the price most Lagosians pay to commercial park owners.

The Commissioner however stated, “LASPA levy of N80,000 divided by the No of days in a year result to N219 only against the above charges of commercial park owners. The difference is clear as the government is quite considerate and responsive in making the environment conducive for all.

“It is important to restate that, being a government that respects the constitution as the sole source of its engagement with the public, the State Government will never resort to any unconstitutional means in its dealing with the people.”

On her part, the General Manager, LASPA explained “most Lagosians don’t have residential parking. We’ve chosen to try and mitigate on non-residential parking. It is not just unfair to the government but also unfair to the residents of the State as people do not make provision for parking spaces.

“We feel as a government for event centres not to make provision for parking spaces. We’ve spoken to Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN and Muslim association that something must be done about parking spaces. If you want to build a mega church, you provide mega parking space. We are in a capitalist society, you can’t make money to the detriment of the government and the people.

“What government is saying is, let the money that goes into private pockets, goes to government and it goes to infrastructure development.

“It is not solely about to make money, we are solving problems. We are not trying to take away commercial parks but if you are getting into the business, the State needs to regulate. It is important to have you on our database.”

Soeakkng on residential buildings, the GM added, “If you are making space for parking outside your title, you will need a permit. As long as you are using government set backs, you still need a permit. This is because government may decide, in future to use the set backs for something else.”