“LAGOS IS SAFE FOR INVESTMENT, BUSINESS OWNERS” – COMMISSIONER

… As Lasema, Other Emergency Responders Simulate Operation ‘Oko Jasosa’ On 3rd Mainland Bridge

Lagos State Government has described the simulation exercise carried out by the officials of Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, LASEMA alongside other emergency stakeholders code-named “Operation Oko Jasosa” at the early hours of Sunday, 29th April, 2018, as a way of reassuring investors and entire residents of Lagos of the preparedness of the State emergency responders to swiftly attend to emergency situations in a coordinated manner.

The Commissioner for Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Relations, Mr. Seye Oladejo, who spoke through the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Dr. Jemilade Longe, disclosed that the exercise shows the capability of the various emergency responders in Lagos State and should further convince residents beyond mere promises that government places high premium on protection of life and property.

He added that Governor Ambode has, since the inception of his tenure three years ago, made a commitment to deploy a sizable chunk of resources towards protecting Lagosians as well as foreigners residing in the State.

“Disasters and accidents are things that you cannot predict but for our investors, what the State government is saying is that if for whatever reason there is an accident, they should rest assured that we have skilled officials, the needed synergy and equipment to combat surmount such situations. The implication of this is that our people can now go to sleep without any fear because there is a government that cares for them,” the Commissioner stated.

Giving an overview of the operation, the General Manager of LASEMA, Mr. Tiamiyu Adeshina explained that the main rationale behind the entire simulation process was the display of synergy that exists among all those involved in attending to emergency situations.

He maintained that exercise was intended to sharpen synergy, foster collaboration, improve the level of preparedness and increase the response capability of relevant stakeholders in the management of multiple casualty incidents, especially along the 3rd Mainland Bridge.

He said: “There is nothing to panic about, this simulation exercise is deliberately planned to prepare our men as emergency responders for a situation like this. After this exercise, LASEMA and other stakeholders involved in this simulation process will go back to the drawing board to reappraise our performances, evaluate the entire rescue operation and design a better way to handle this type of scenario whenever it happens.”

“It is part of the proactive measures we decided to carry out so that we won’t start learning how to combat real accident scenes when very precious lives are at stake,” the General Manager averred.

He described the entire synergy among the responders as perfect, saying that the equipment and professional skills of the rescuers have been put to test and can successfully handle real-life situations similar to the simulated accident scene.

He reassured Lagosians that wherever they are and at whatever time of the day, LASEMA with the support of other relevant stakeholders will do all within their power to make sure that they are safe.

The General Manager urged residents of the State to always remember the free-toll emergency line – 767 and 112, stressing that “Don’t leave anything to chance, take advantage of this free lines and activate the call immediately an emergency is perceived for swift assistance in order to reduce the degree of injuries, casualties or loss”.

Adeshina said the nickname given to the rescue operation ‘Oko Jasosa’ was derived from the vehicle that plunged into the Lagos lagoon from the simulated accident involving a luxurious bus and five other vehicles.

The exercise involved men of the LASEMA Response Unit (LRU), Lagos State Fire Service, Lagos State Ambulance Service (LASAMBUS), State Environmental Health and Monitoring Unit (SEHMU), Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), Lagos State Neighborhood Safety Corps, Lagos State Waterway Authority (LASWA), Rapid Response Squad (RRS), Marine Police National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Nigerian Security & Civil Defence Corps and Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC).