Sanwo-Olu, Wahab, Save Nnobi, Odelola Residents from Noise Pollution

Zach Atoyebi

Few days ago, the Lagos State Government announced that it shut over 840 event centres and social facilities for safety violations and non-compliance with the extant laws of the state in the last one year.

Commissioner for Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Relations, Gbenga Oyerinde, who disclosed this, noted that in one year, the Lagos State Safety Commission carried out enforcement action at 840 facilities, including event centres, clubs, lounges and hotels and construction sites for safety infractions in the interest of public safety.

He cited example with the Lekki Conservation Centre, Quilox, among others. The move, he said was in line with the Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s THEMES Plus Developmental Agenda to mitigate risks and protect life and property of government and citizens of Lagos State.

While those who reside around areas where the 840 facilities were shut down would obviously be thrilled by the state government’s action, residents of Nnobi, Odelola, Odutayo and some other adjoining streets are unfortunately undergoing excruciating pains caused by noise pollution from a popular facility – Whiteley Event Centre, located on Nnobi Street, which the state government has turned a blind eye to.

The facility is alleged to be owned by a member of the Federal House of Representatives, Hon. Lanre Okunlola, who represents Surulere II Constituency in the 10th National Assembly.

Just as in the past few days, the Lagos Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA), with the active supports of the Commissioner for Environment, Tokunbo Wahab, has been working to bring sanity to the state, it would be nice for the state government to save residents of Nnobi, Odelola, Odutayo and others from noise pollution during the day and at night, almost all weekends.

People who go to work from Mondays to Fridays are not able to have decent rest during weekends because of the activities at Whiteley Event Centre. These residents are not asking for too much. All they require from operators of Whiteley Event Centre is to ensure that the stipulated LASEPA guidelines on standard approved noise be adhered to.

They are demanding that the guidelines which state that, “the standard approved noise level in residential areas shall not exceed 55 decibels during the day and 45 decibels at night,” are fully complied with, so that when they in their houses, they can rest properly and have descent conversation.

People living with noise pollution feel irritable, frustrated or angry and If they cannot control the amount of noise in their environment, the impact on their mental health intensifies. Noise pollution is a common cause of sleep disturbance which is a challenge residents of this neighborhood face presently.

In May 2023, Tunji Bello, the then Commissioner for Environment, reportedly carried out a free test for 250 residents to ascertain hearing defects caused by noise pollution, during the 8th edition of the State’s ”Noiseless Lagos” campaign, held in Ikeja.

From what residents of Nnobi, Odelola, Odutayo and other adjoining streets have suffered due to noise pollution from Whiteley Event Centre, if the present Commissioner decides to repeat same test in the aforementioned area, the outcome would jolt him because of the damage that has been done to their hearing.

According to the Harvard Medicine magazine, noise pollution does not only drive hearing loss, tinnitus, and hypersensitivity to sound, but can cause or exacerbate cardiovascular disease; type 2 diabetes; sleep disturbances; stress; mental health and cognition problems, including memory impairment and attention deficits; childhood learning delays; and low birth weight.

Similarly, Medical News Today reveals that a 2018 review, showed that “there is evidence that short-term exposure to noise pollution can temporarily raise blood pressure and increase blood viscosity. There is also an association between long-term exposure to noise and higher rates of cardiovascular disease.”

Therefore, residents of Nnobi, Odelola, Odutayo and adjoining streets are appealing to Sanwo-Olu, Wahab and operators of Whiteley Event Centre to save them from noise pollution so that they can derive comfort, joy, well-being, relax, procreate and have decent conversations with their families when they in their respective homes at weekends.