Many living in the Lafiaji area of Lagos State face the risk of homelessness as the government marks their retirement homes for "illegal" demolition under a selective implementation of the Lagos-Calabar Highway plan.
In 2006, Adekola Akinleye thought he had taken all the right steps to secure a comfortable life. He purchased a landed property in the Lafiaji area of Eti-Osa Local Government Area of Lagos State from the Ojomu chieftaincy family, ensuring that his Deed of Assignment and Certificate of Occupancy were in order and that the land was not under government acquisition.
However, 18 years later, on 10 May, his world was turned upside down when a neighbour informed him that the Federal Ministry of Works officials had marked his house along with more than 80 others for demolition.
A letter from the authorities directed Mr Akinleye to submit documents proving ownership to the Permanent Secretary, Land Bureau in Alausa, Ikeja, as his property allegedly fell within the right-of-way alignment of the Lagos-Calabar coastal highway project. Yet, Mr Akinleye, a senior citizen like many affected neighbours, insisted that his building did not encroach on the coastal road's right-of-way.
He points out that the original alignment had been clearly marked by the Lagos State Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development and gazetted by the Federal Ministry of Works and other relevant agencies as far back as 2006 and 2013, leaving him bewildered by the sudden threat to his home.
Mr Akinleye, an octogenarian and retiree, was fully aware of the planned coastal road construction. His knowledge of the plan made him take deliberate steps to purchase a property outside the established Right of Way, avoiding any potential encroachment.
He stressed that neither the state nor federal agencies ever notified him of any changes to the original alignment, which had been marked and gazetted. It was not until the sudden and unexpected demolition notice in May 2024 that he learned of the new alignment, which has left him shocked and perplexed.
"I'm struggling to find words to express my disgust at the emotional trauma my family suffered when we received the demolition notice. My wife and I were in the USA when the notice arrived on 10 May, just seven days after we left Nigeria on 3 May, for medical reasons. We had to rush back home without completing our medical check-ups, putting our health at risk.
"As an 83-year-old retired government official who served my country for 25 years, I expect to live out my remaining years in peace. My wife, 77, and I are not expecting this turmoil thrust upon us," he added.
Jude Majekodunmi, another concerned resident, is filled with anxiety about the uncertain future that lies ahead for his family. Compounding his distress is a pre-existing health issue with his leg, making the situation even more precarious.
The sudden and unexpected illegal demolition notice has taken a significant toll on his mental well-being, exacerbating his worries and fears for the future.
"This situation has affected my mental health. By now, this property should have been rented, but that is impossible due to this incident," Mr Majekodunmi said.
Controversial project
The Lagos-Calabar coastal highway project is a 700-kilometre road that aims to enhance regional connectivity and improve Nigeria's economy. It starts from Ahmadu Bello Way, Victoria Island in Lagos, stretching along the coastal lines of Ogun, Ondo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, and Akwa Ibom states, and ends in Calabar, Cross River State.
The ambitious project was awarded to Hitech Construction Company Limited on an Engineering, Procurement, Construction, and Financing (EPC+F) arrangement. This arrangement means that the contractor bears a large share of the risk and funding, and the federal government provides counterpart funding.
However, the project has been steeped in multidimensional controversies, including the contract awarded to Hitech without bidding or open tender.
This lack of transparency has raised concerns from Nigerians, who point to the longstanding close relationship between Hitech's owners, Ronald and Gilbert Chagoury, and President Bola Tinubu.
A recent investigation by the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), published by PREMIUM TIMES, has shed further light on the extent of these connections.
According to the report, the relationship between the two families extends beyond the first generation, with President Tinubu's son, Oluwaseyi, holding a majority stake in Promomedia Loatsad Global Services Limited, an offshore company registered in the British Virgin Islands eight years ago. Ronald Chagoury Jr., son of Hitech's owner, is also a shareholder in the company.
The first phase of the coastal road, which stretches 47.47 kilometres from Lagos, sparked outrage after the federal government demolished Landmark Beach Resort in Victoria Island. The popular resort accommodated several businesses and was valued at over $200 million.
Following intense criticism from Nigerians and other stakeholders, the Minister of Works, David Umah, announced that the federal government would revert to the gazetted alignment between Kilometres 16 and 25 to save submarine cables and the Okun-Ajah community.
"To solve MTN, 2Africa and Okun-Ajah community (problems), we are diverting completely from the new alignment to the old alignment, and we are rejoining back to our new alignment at Kilometre 25," Mr Umahi said.
According to residents, the Lafiaji community is situated at Kilometre 13, so their homes still face demolition threats.
The affected residents have levelled allegations of ethnic bias and favouritism against the Minister of Works, claiming that the minister manipulated the project's alignment to shield the upscale Ocean Bay Estate from demolition.
According to the residents, this estate, which falls within the originally gazetted right of way, was inexplicably spared, while their own homes were targeted for demolition, raising suspicions of preferential treatment.
Lagos-based lawyer Jiti Ogunye, in an open letter, urged President Bola Tinubu to order the Minister of Works to revert to the original long-established Right of Way.
Mr Ogunye is the legal representative of Oluropo Sekoni, a professor, Kola Akinleye, Bonojo Olalekan, Festus Ogwu, and other residents in the area who are mostly well-respected retirees.
According to the human rights lawyer, the minister's decision to change the Right of Way is "an abuse of power and unlawful exercise of ministerial discretion."
"From available information, the new alignment being dictated by the Honourable Minister of Works and Federal Controller of Works has not been assimilated by the Office of the Surveyor-General of Lagos State and the Lands Bureau, but curiously, the Office of Development Matters, Lagos State Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, has served our clients," the letter read in part.
He added that his clients have gathered information that the Minister of Works and the Federal Controller of Works "have an improper and less-than-patriotic reason for arbitrarily directing a departure from the long-established Right of Way for the construction of the Highway."
"Amongst some huge housing estates that allegedly have sprung up illicitly on the long-established Right of Way are Ocean Bay Estate and others.
"The developers of these Estates and some of the owners-occupiers of buildings therein are alleged to have strong political connections, ethnic ties, and social links with the powers that be; hence, the Honourable Minister of Works and Federal Controller of Works have in an unabashed display of nepotism, as alleged, 'ruled' that the properties in these estates are too valuable to be demolished, and that demolishing them would attract huge compensation from the federal government.
"In consequence, it is being alleged that the Honourable Minister of Works and Federal Controller of Works directed that the Right of Way be altered away from the established path and the said estates and that a new alignment be made through our clients' lands that were never established as the Right of Way," the lawyer wrote.
He asked why his law-abiding citizens and clients are "being rewarded with oppression, while violators, who knowingly and arrogantly built on the long-established Right of Way, are being treated with reverence?"
Minister justifies plan
At the 3rd stakeholders' meeting for the coastal highway project in Lagos, Mr Umahi stated that adhering to the original alignment would result in the demolition of approximately 750 houses, whereas adopting the revised alignment would reduce the casualties to around 490 houses.
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
When asked why law-abiding citizens, who had intentionally avoided infringing on the government's Right of Way, became the target of the government's decision, Uchenna Orji, Special Adviser (Media) to the Minister of Works, maintained that the planned demolition supersedes public interest.
"Several stakeholders' meetings were held in Lagos, and there was a need for that necessary realignment. And, of course, we do know that the government can take over a particular land overriding public interest," he stated.
This implies that the government's interests in the coastal highway project take precedence over the rights and investments of affected citizens, who had acted in good faith to comply with existing regulations.
Mr Orji also rejected claims that the Minister of Works intentionally manipulated the alignment to spare Ocean Bay Estate and other properties, labelling such accusations as "fabricated" and attributing them to "enemies of progress" who seek to obstruct development.
"So, what they should be expecting or talking about is compensation within the provisions of the law," he added.
However, the residents categorically reject compensation, insisting that the government revert to the original alignment, thereby avoiding the unlawful demolition of their homes and preserving their right to safe and secure housing.
"No compensation can adequately replace one's loss of one's comfort zone, especially a comfort one has enjoyed over the years. If one gives all this away out of one's free will, it is a different matter, but where one is being forced, this is intolerable and wicked. I don't know what the government considers before fixing the value, but certainly, the loser of everything will be the property owner," Mr Akinleye said.
The imminent demolition of more than 80 houses in Lafiaji poses a significant threat to the housing security of numerous residents, predominantly senior citizens, who are now facing the scary prospect of homelessness amidst an atmosphere of uncertainties of facing the twin terrors of sudden demolition and government indifference.
