There is a disturbing trend towards demolishing people’s houses in some parts of Nigeria. This has happened in some states such as Anambra, Enugu, Lagos, Kano, Imo, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), among others. In most cases, the authorities involved cite unapproved buildings or building on canals as an excuse. But, the rate at which the exercise is carried out these days appears to indicate something more than what the authorities tell Nigerians.
In Kano State, the incumbent government demolished some properties soon after it took over power. Last year, there were demolitions in Kaduna, where about 140 houses in Graceland community in the Zaria Local Government Area of the state were affected. In Abuja, the FCT authorities have also demolished some properties, the most recent contentious one being that of a businessman, Prince Nicholas Ukachukwu. Hundreds of other properties face similar fate in Abuja.
Last year, the Lagos State Government brought down some buildings in Okota, Ebute Metta, Surulere, Agege, Oworonshoki, Alimosho, Ifako-Ijaiye, Amuwo-Odofin, Yaba and Lagos Island, among others. In Festac, Lagos, the Federal Housing Authority (FHA) earmarked 644 houses for demolition and 744 others for partial demolition the same last year. Some of the most recently demolished buildings are in Mende Estate in Maryland. In Ibeju-Lekki area of Lagos, the state government said 80 per cent of the buildings there had no government approval. The Ibeju-Lekki corridor is said to have been zoned as agricultural land. There are concerns that these buildings may be demolished even when many government agencies saddled with the responsibility of monitoring estates and constructions and enforcing building regulations in the state closed their eyes to such infractions. Ibeju-Lekki is where we have the Dangote Refinery and the Lekki Free Trade Zone.
We do not subscribe to people erecting illegal buildings in any city in Nigeria. But, some of the current demolitions smack of insensitivity to the plight of many Nigerians with regard to housing. Some of the people who built these houses are retired workers who used their life savings to acquire the properties. In Nigeria, we don’t have enough houses. Currently, there is a housing deficit of about 28 million units in the country. Some real estate experts estimate that the housing deficit could be over 50 million. Many people have nowhere to call home. Some sleep under the bridges, as has been recently discovered in Lagos. Unfortunately, we are demolishing the ones we have. So, rather than embark on indiscriminate demolitions, government should think of how to close the deficit gap.
One major way is to simplify and digitalize the processes of registering a property or acquiring approved government titles for real estate investment. Getting such now is extremely frustrating and difficult in many states. It is riddled with corruption and unnecessary bottlenecks.
Inasmuch as rebuilding a city is desirable, there should be a limit to demolitions. In fact, demolitions should only be done in public interest. For instance, buildings on top of canals that obstruct free flow of water should be brought down because they cause flooding that damage the ecosystem. Besides, any building housing criminal elements or terrorists or built under high-tension cables should also be brought down in public interest. Even then, those who have valid papers should be adequately compensated.
Throwing people away without sufficient notice is not good. Government is for the welfare and interest of the people. What is happening in some parts of the country in the name of demolition appears to be politically motivated. Some of them were reckless and done in bad faith. Government should recognize the huge money people have spent in building as the cost of building materials is very high now.
In any case, how many housing units have the governments that have embarked on these demolitions built? Are their officials not complicit in some of these illegal structures? Some of them collect bribes and allow the building of such structures to continue rather than stopping them at the foundation level. At the end of the day, the same government comes up with bulldozers to bring the buildings down.
Such underhand dealings should stop henceforth. We must follow due process in everything we do as a people. We advise potential property owners to engage in relevant search and due diligence before ever buying any property to know if the property is even worth buying. The search will reveal what the land is zoned for. Some areas are for industrial purposes; some are for agriculture and some are residential. After this, they go for fence permit and other building regulation requirements.
Government should halt construction of buildings at foundation level if there are breaches to building regulations. It should give adequate notice before embarking on any demolition. Knowing that the level of hardship in the country is unbearable for many citizens, government at all levels should soft-pedal in their current demolitions. It’s high time we stopped doing things for political reasons.