Thousands of residents of Ilaje Otumara and Baba Ijora communities in Lagos Mainland have been forcibly evicted following a large-scale demolition exercise by the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA).
In a statement shared with PREMIUM TIMES on Monday, a coalition of civil society organisations (CSOs) and community leaders said this action contradicts previous government assurances that residents would not be displaced.
They condemned the demolition, stating it was carried out without prior notice on 7 March.
The coalition alleged that residents were beaten, their homes and businesses destroyed, and their belongings looted.
“We, the undersigned, stand with the people of Ilaje Otumara and Baba Ijora to condemn this mass forced eviction. It violates existing court orders and betrays years of engagement with the government, which had promised a win-win regeneration plan for the area,” the statement read.
The organisations behind the statement include Justice & Empowerment Initiatives (JEI), Nigerian Slum/Informal Settlement Federation, Centre for Children’s Health, Education, Orientation, and Protection (CEE-HOPE), Lagos Urban Development Initiative (LUDI), Global Rights, and Enough is Enough (EiE) Nigeria.
Broken promises and ignored protests
According to the statement, LASBCA officials marked homes for demolition on 11 February, giving residents just two days’ notice before the operation began.
Alarmed by the looming eviction, Mariam Alo of JEI stated that the residents protested at the Lagos Mainland Local Government office, where the chairperson pledged support.
She also said residents demonstrated at the Lagos State Government Secretariat in Alausa, appealing to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and the State House of Assembly to intervene.
Ms Alo said the leaders of the community met with senior officials of the Lagos State Urban Renewal Agency (LASURA) and the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, who assured them they would not be evicted.
However, she said despite these assurances, LASBCA officials, police officers, and armed thugs stormed the communities, demolishing structures.
The statement alleged that journalists from two international media outlets were blocked from covering the event, with one reporter assaulted.
“The eviction took place in the middle of Ramadan and Lent, during the worst economic crisis Nigeria has faced in decades. It has left thousands of people sleeping on the streets, vulnerable to looting, sexual assault, and disease,” Ms Alo on behalf of the CSOs stated.
A pattern of forced evictions
The statement explained that the forced evictions of Ilaje Otumara and Baba Ijora are not isolated incidents.
They said that similar demolitions occurred in Oworonshoki (2023), Orisunmibare (February 2024), Otto (March 2024), and Oko Baba (September 2024).
In 2017, the Lagos State High Court ruled that forced evictions without proper consultation violated the right to dignity under Section 34 of the Nigerian Constitution.
They said the ruling came after the 2016-17 Otodo Gbame evictions, where thousands of waterfront dwellers were displaced.
The coalition accused “powerful land-owning families and corrupt private developers” of using government agencies to displace poor residents for financial gain.
“This signals a return to an era when government assurances meant nothing, and residents must assume that their homes will be seized when powerful interests intervene,” the statement read.
Call for action
The CSOs demanded an immediate halt to evictions, emergency relief for affected residents, and the rebuilding of destroyed communities.
As of press time, the Lagos State Government had not issued an official statement on the demolition.
Not the First Time
This is not the first time the Lagos State Government has carried out demolitions without prior notice.
In May 2024, officials demolished Ipakere in Noforija, Eredo Local Council Development Area of Epe. The New Town Development Authority (NTDA) reportedly ignored residents’ appeals for an explanation before proceeding with the demolition in August 2024.
Bolarinwa Oluwasegun, Chairman of the Ipakere Community Development Association, lamented: “We have lived here peacefully for over 12 years. They entered our community in May and marked buildings without any explanation. In August, they returned and asked us to evacuate before carrying out the demolition.”
Similarly, residents of the Ayetoro community, about 3000, have also decried the destruction of their homes without warning.
Additionally, over 600 traders and 350 shops have been affected by recent demolitions carried out by Lagos State government agencies.
(Premium Times)
