FG threatens to demolish unlawful buildings on Lagos shoreline

The Federal Authorities has warned builders on the Lagos shoreline to regularise their initiatives or face revocation and potential demolition.

This was disclosed in an announcement on Thursday by the Director of Press and Public Relations on the Ministry of Housing and City Improvement, Salisu Haiba.

The ultimatum was delivered by the Minister of Housing and City Improvement, Ahmed Dangiwa, following his inspection of the Lagos Lagoon Estates and different shoreline fronts on Thursday.

Accompanied by the Everlasting Secretary, Dr Marcus Ogunbiyi, and senior officers from the ministry, Dangiwa expressed concern over the growing variety of irregular developments on the lagoon’s shoreline.

He stated these developments, which embrace unauthorised land reclamation and constructing, are going down with out the mandatory documentation and approval from the Federal Authorities.

“There isn’t any room for haphazard developments on the Lagos shoreline. We’re working intently with the Lagos State Authorities to deal with these anomalies and make sure that all developments are according to the regulation,” he stated.

The minister’s inspection tour included a ship journey with officers from the Nigeria Inland Waterways Authority to evaluate the scenario firsthand.

Through the go to, they noticed that some builders had crammed elements of the shoreline with sand and begun building with out securing correct titles from the Federal Authorities, in violation of established rules.

In a joint settlement with the Lagos State Authorities, Dangiwa outlined plans for collaborative efforts to manage growth on the shoreline.

In response to the minister, the Federal Authorities is not going to tolerate such illegal actions, and builders have been given a one-month deadline to regularise their initiatives. Failure to conform will lead to revocation and demolition of the unlawful buildings.

“The Federal Authorities is within the means of documenting its property nationwide, and we’re notably targeted on guaranteeing that our shoreline properties are correctly regulated,” Dangiwa defined.

The Ministry of Housing and City Improvement holds the authority to subject titles on the shoreline underneath the Land (Title Vesting) Act of 1975. Moreover, the Nigeria Inland Waterways Authority is liable for granting permits for dredging alongside the shoreline.

However, the Lagos State Authorities controls bodily growth within the space.

Dangiwa additionally visited a number of different Federal Authorities websites in Lagos, together with the Ogbogbo Housing Challenge in Ikorodu and the Ikorodu Low-Value Housing websites.

The minister’s go to will culminate in a stakeholder engagement scheduled for Friday, December 13, 2024, the place additional discussions will probably be held on the way forward for shoreline growth in Lagos.