As demolition of buildings continue in Lagos, a lot of people now live in fear, they are afraid of sleeping and waking up to demolition of their houses, Lagosian no longer sleep with their two eyes closed.
The Government of Lagos state led by his Excellency Governor Sanwo Olu, has issued a warning to residents of Lagos whose houses are cited illegally asking them to evacuate the premises within a ninety days notice period.
However, the recent demolition of structures at Arowojobe and Mende in Maryland, Lagos state by the Government sparked an outrage amongst people living in Lagos; people affected alleged that they were given only two hours notice before the exercise was executed.
Government said that the exercise was done with the motive to reclaim Odo-Iya Alaro channel’s right of way, to give room for free flow of rainwater.
According to the Lagos state commissioner for environment and water resources, Tokunbo Wahab, the demolitions were due to developers encroaching on approved setbacks, which results to obstruction on rain water flow.
Tokunbo debunked in his ‘X’ handle formerly ‘Twitter ‘ the allegation that the Government gave just two hours notice to residents, he said that residents received first demolition notice in 2021 and the final warning in November 2023.
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In his words, ‘’The instruction to immediately continue to remove the structures in all the alignment has been given to the enforcement team after the first notice to remove was served in 2021 and the last notice was serve in November 2023 after meeting with the stakeholder’’
In similar vein, the Lagos State Government has threatened demolition of unapproved houses in Lekki, Etiosa Local Government area, the commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Dr. Olumide Oluyinka disclosed that many buildings in Ibeju Lekki axis are wrongly cited and risk demolition, according to her, 80% of buildings in the area does not comply with the Lagos state’s master plan.
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This revelation has put Lekki residents and property owners on their toes, as they fear what fate awaits them.
Joy Ehkator, a trader who lives and owns a property in Jakande Lekki, narrated her concerns about the threatened demolition to news men, she said that ever since the shocking revelation was made about Lekki buildings,she and her family has known no peace, the thought of being homeless, the fear of not knowing where to run to and not being able to navigate the hardship that could come with it, has stolen their sleep.
In her words ‘’ I and my family no longer sleep with our two eyes closed since the Government threatened to demolish buildings in Lekki, we have lived in Lekki for two decades and do not know where to run to if our only home is demolished, the house we live in is the only property we acquired in the two decades we spent hustling in Lagos State’’
Between 2023 and 2024, Lagos state Government has carried out demolition exercise in places like, Abulado, Ajao estate, Mangodo, Ijora Under-Bridge, Obalende Under-Bridge, Maryland, according to them; these actions were taken to alleviate the environmental and public health issues steaming from these informal settlements.