The Lagos State Government has said that gos State Government has said that plans have been concluded to stage this year’s edition of the Lagos Street Carnival scheduled to hold on December 3 along Oba Akran Avenue in Ikeja.

A public announcement released today said: “The Lagos State Government wishes to inform the general public that as a result of The Lagos Street Carnival, scheduled to hold on Sunday 3rdof December, 2017 along Oba Akran Avenue, the stretch of Oba Akran Avenue from under the bridge at Obafemi Awolowo way to Sapara Street Junction and all adjoining roads will be closed to vehicular traffic. Therefore motorists and commuters that have no vital business around Oba Akran Avenue are advised to avoid this road.

“However, alternative routes available to motorists include Agege Motor Road all the way through Ile Zik to connect Ikeja while motorists can also use Akanni Doherty through Ladipo Oluwole, Adeniyi Jones and Aromire Road to connect Obafemi Awolowo Way.

“All other alternate roads leading to Oba Akran and environs will be strategically manned by uniformed traffic personnel for seamless and efficient traffic flow.”

Earlier on Sunday, the Special Adviser to the State Governor on Tourism, Arts and Culture, Mrs. Adebimpe Akinsola, said in an interview with newsmen that the venue of the carnival would be shut down but adequate preparations have been made for alternative routes to mitigate the impact of the road closure on motorists and residents. Dubbed, “Lagos Street Party” in its maiden edition last year, the event has grown into a carnival to mark the start of the end of the year activities, celebrate the multi-cultural nature of Lagosians and reposition the state as a formidable cultural destination. Speaking on security arrangements already put in place, Akinsola said: “We like to assure Lagosians and visitors that efforts are in place to ensure that the venue and environs are safe and incident-free.

“We expect more visitors this year and a lot more will be coming. In terms of security and crowd control, the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture is not working alone. We are working with the police, Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Fire service, LASAMBUS and the Lagos State Waste Management Agency (LAWMA). All of them are onboard and people are not going to see Oba Akran on Monday in a dirty state.”

She expressed optimism that the event will witness an overflow of people of diverse cultures from all over the State engaged in merrymaking to usher in the Yuletide.

“That was how it was done on the Island and this year we are bringing it to the mainland and of course next year, we would be looking at another location because the aim of government is to take this carnival all around Lagos,” she added.

She reiterated that through project T.H.E.S.E which stands for Tourism, Hospitality, Entertainment and Arts and Sports to achieve Excellence, the State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, is committed to repositioning

the State and ensure excellence in the true sense of the word. While urging everyone to participate and enjoy the entertaining activities lined up for the carnival, the Special Adviser said: “The carnival is not only just for adults alone, the children will have their own corner where they can have fun.” The carnival which has a line-up of artists including Olamide, Lil Kesh, Queen Salawa Abeni, Malaika and Tope Sax amongst others will start from noon until midnight on Sunday.

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