…It’s death knell, victims cry out

…We’re preventing future disasters –LASG

By Maduka Nweke

More than 40,000 Lagos residents have been rendered homeless in what many victims describe as a wicked “New Year gift,” from the Lagos state government.

While many celebrated and designed their programmes for the new year, the Lagos government rolled in the bulldozers and what followed were rubble, tears and dislocation.

Families forced from their homes say the sudden loss of shelter has pushed them into hardship, uncertainty and despair, with some warning that the situation threatens their survival.

However, the Lagos state government has defended its action, insisting that the ongoing demolition of illegal structures was a necessary campaign to enforce planning laws, even as many residents accuse authorities of targeting waterfront communities to free up land for real-estate development.

Amid growing public debate, the Lagos State House of Assembly has endorsed the government’s actions, backing the removal of shanties and buildings erected along shorelines and beneath high-tension power lines across the state.

In a statement , Chairman of the House Committee on Information, Security and Strategy, Mr Stephen Ogundipe, affirmed legislative support for the demolition drive led by the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, with major operations recorded in Oworonsoki and Makoko.

The exercise has, however, triggered protests from affected communities. Makoko residents recently stormed the Assembly complex, urging Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to suspend further demolitions and consider the humanitarian impact on displaced families.

Ogundipe, who represents Oshodi-Isolo Constituency-01, maintained that the demolitions are aimed at safeguarding lives and property, warning that the spread of makeshift structures along waterfronts poses significant safety and environmental risks. He described the presence of ramshackle buildings, sheds, and shoreline shanties as alarming, stressing the need for proactive government intervention to prevent disasters, enforce urban planning standards, and promote safer living conditions across Lagos.

“The shorelines have turned to abodes of miscreants/street urchins, kidnappers, touts, street traders and hawkers, who often vandalise public utilities and attack innocent citizens. Although the demolition exercise may be painful for those affected, it is a necessary step to protect the larger society and uphold the rule of law. The government’s action reflects a commitment to preventing avoidable disasters and ensuring sustainable urban development.”

The spokesman said the leadership of the Assembly viewed the exercise as responsible and forward-looking. Ogundipe called on residents to remain calm and cooperate with government officials, assuring them that their concerns would not be ignored. He also urged citizens to always comply with building regulations and planning approvals, to prevent future occurrences, stressing that collective responsibility is key to avoiding disasters. Ogundipe, however, assured of the assembly’s commitment to balancing enforcement with empathy, ensuring that while laws are upheld, affected citizens are not left without support during the transition.

Sanwo-Olu recently explained that the affected structures were cleared to avert potential future tragedies. The governor noted that many of the buildings posed serious environmental, structural, and safety risks to residents and the general public. He said that the state cannot afford to wait until disaster strikes before taking decisive action. He said although such measures might be difficult, they were essential to prevent loss of lives and large-scale destruction. Sanwo-Olu assured affected citizens that the state government was prepared to provide support and assistance, where necessary. Unexpected demolitions recently also occurred in Ajegunle, Lagos, where over 100 workers, allegedly commissioned by the Ojora of Iganmu royal family tore down homes and structures. The action, driven by a land dispute over alleged unpaid annual levies, has caused significant displacement and loss of property for residents and landlords, despite some claiming to have valid documents.

Tussle over ownership of space

According to a close confidant, the Ojora of Iganmu Royal Family claimed that the actions were taken against landlords for failing to pay annual levies on what they assert is leasehold land. Reports indicate that a large group of over 100 workers, including bricklayers and carpenters, began removing roofs and tearing down walls resulting in having numerous homes being destroyed thereby displacing residents and tenants with looters further causing more damages. While the Royal Family claims public notices were served for non-payment, residents expressed shock at the destruction, claiming to have documentation and having paid their levies. The residents are hoping that a peaceful resolution to the tension, which has disrupted the community, will be the final end to the issue.

In the same vein, residents look on during demolition of houses in Makoko, a floating slum in Lagos, on January 9, 2026. Authorities have demolished hundreds of wooden shacks in Makoko, Africa’s largest and most iconic floating slum, which is built on stilts above the lagoon in the heart of Lagos. Amphibious excavators escorted by armed policemen have roared through Makoko, Africa’s largest and most legendary floating slum in recent days, crushing hundreds of wooden shacks built on stilts above the lagoon in the heart of Lagos. The operation is the latest of a campaign to remove what the Lagos State government describes as illegal structures and, critics say, reclaim waterfront land for real-estate development. Three people, two of them babies, have died from effects of teargas fired by police since the clearances began two days before Christmas, three rights groups said. Residents say the demolitions which an NGO says have displaced over 30,000 people, were done without warning, a claim the Lagos state government disputes.

“They treated us as if we were lower animals,” Alex Wusa, a 25-year-old teacher, told AFP aboard an old canoe sailing through Makoko’s waterways. My house has been demolished. My shop has been demolished. Even the school where I teach has been demolished.”

With no official data available, Makoko’s population is hard to estimate, with figures ranging from 80,000 inhabitants, according to NGO JEI, to over 300,000, according to local chiefs. Its homes on stilts above Lagos’s polluted lagoon are a striking symbol of Nigeria’s urban poverty and resilience, and a frequent arena in the megacity’s never-ending land disputes, which almost always end with those with money displacing those without. Authorities often attempt to hem in or demolish slums rather than extend electricity, paved roads, or schools to them.

Ghetto life

Even as the area is largely lacking basic services such as power, water, and schools, the area is a bubbling home to low-income earners most of whom rely on fishing and informal trade as a source of livelihood. The slum has existed for over 100 years. The community which has long caught the eye of writers, travellers, and NGOs is seen as an eyesore by the government, faced similar demolitions in 2005 and 2012. In the latter instance, a community leader died when a government demolition team destroyed hundreds of houses. When AFP visited recently, many families, including children and pets, had slept rough aboard canoes. Heavy rainfall the night before soaked most of their makeshift shelters. “This suffering is too much,” said Iyabo Olaleye, a fishmonger who lost two houses. “The rain drenched my children, and I have nowhere to go.”

Disaster prevention as reason for demolition

According to one of the state officials who witnessed the demolition, the exercise was necessary for safety and urban renewal reasons. According to him, all structures built within 100 metres of transmission lines that cut over the lagoon were marked for removal. Head of Lagos’s urban renewal office, Gbolahan Oki, did not respond to AFP requests for comment but told journalists in December that residents had been warned. In March, “we gave them a minimum of about 14 days, with a lot of pleading that they would definitely move away from the high tension” lines, Oki said. Instead, he said, “They are increasing.” But a coalition of five NGOs said the government demolished homes beyond the 100-metre target.

Disputes

With dredging machines, sand filling, and reclaiming land nearby, the NGOs blasted “continued collusion of the government with an oligarchy of powerful land-owning families and corrupt private developers” saying the non-resolution of authority over such spaces will continue to brew tensions. “High-end projects, of which Lagos has many, given Nigeria’s oil wealth, have often found room in the cramped city of over 20 million by reclaiming shoreline. Weeks before the Makoko demolition, bulldozers levelled dozens of houses in the Oworonshoki neighbourhood on the opposite side of the lagoon.

Officials said many buildings lacked proper planning approvals and posed environmental risks.

Residents disputed the claims and accused authorities of land grabbing for private developments. “When they demolish, will they build for the use of those who occupied those properties?” asked Moses Ogunleye, a fellow at the Nigerian Institute of Town Planners,” he said.

High rent

The high cost of accommodation in Lagos is a matter that will always help to create in the state according to one of the residents in one of the demolished areas who pleaded anonymity. Lagos faces one of the most severe housing shortages in Africa, and homelessness is rife in Nigeria’s largest city by population but smallest by landmass set to become the world’s largest metropolis by 2100. Experts say Lagos’s housing situation is paradoxical. As informal settlements are cleared to build new communities, thousands of homes in affluent neighbourhoods remain empty due to soaring rents. About half of the state’s population lives in slums, said University of Lagos professor Timothy Nubi. Even in shanties and makeshift homes, residents pay huge rents. When people pay the equivalent of $126 annually “for a space under the bridge, you know there is a problem”, Nubi said. “It becomes more alarming when you still see thousands of houses vacant.” Nubi proposes “gentrification” that upgrades slums like Makoko without displacing residents.

By Maduka Nweke