The Office of Mineral Resources, Lagos State has waded into the viral video over the alleged huge loss of revenue incurred by farmers, by dredging near their farms.
In a statement, the Deputy Director of Public Affairs Unit, Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Adetola Idowu, said on learning of the matter, the Special Adviser to the state Governor on Mineral Resources, Abiola Olowu, dispatched a team led by a director, Emilio Cardoso to investigate it.
She said the ministry had called for calm until the matter was investigated and findings released and that the Ministry had ordered the dredging company to stop work until the investigation was concluded.
She quoted Cardoso as saying: “We are not going to be biased in our findings as we are empowered to ensure that Lagosians and their businesses are protected. Samples of water, fishes, and other materials have been collected for testing, and we shall do all within our ambit to find out the real cause of the death of the fishes”.
Cardoso added: “No party is being indicted at this early stage of investigations, but we assure the public that the right thing will be done and the interests of both parties well protected. No individual will intentionally want to destroy another person’s business as a result of land operations.