30th January, 2024
The Lagos State Government has given a 14-day ultimatum to owners of adjoining structures, and shanties within and around the Mandilas building recently engulfed by fire to vacate and remove all illegal structures within the area or risk sanctions from the government.
This ultimatum was issued on Monday during a joint enforcement visit to the site of the fire incident by some key government agencies in the built sector, including the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA), Central Business District, Lagos State Task Force, Lagos State Safety Commission, Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA), Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), among others.
During the joint enforcement exercise led by the Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Dr. Olumide Oluyinka, the illegal occupants were given the option of self-removal of the shanties and attachments within the specified period or paying the government for that service.
He said the present state of markets on Lagos Island was below the standard of what the smart city status of Lagos demanded.
The Commissioner maintained that any attempt to thwart the image and efforts of the state government in this regard would be resisted vehemently.
He restated the stance of the state government on zero tolerance for shanties, assuring that all illegal
attachments to buildings on Lagos Island would be removed upon the expiration of the ultimatum.
“Let me also emphasise here that this exercise is not targeted at any group of persons or tribe. What we are saying is that this present administration stands against everything that does not befit the standard of Lagos.
“The cities of London, Dubai, New York, and other developed climes are not known for illegal trading and haphazard development and as such our own must not be different, Lagos must not be messed with, this is the centre of excellence and we must portray ourselves as such,” he said.
The Commissioner appealed to community leaders to help prevail on residents of Lagos Island, especially those within their sphere of influence.
He promised that the enforcement exercise would be sustained until total sanity is restored to the entire Lagos Island.
He revealed that the present administration wants to further move up the ladder from the present rating by Time Out, a British media and hospitality company to the number one position as the best city to visit in the world.
The General Manager of Lagos State Building Control Agency, LASBCA, Gbolahan Oki, who ordered the immediate demolition of some illegal structures attached to buildings within and around the Mandilas 10-storey structure, said that the 14-day ultimatum took effect from Monday 29th January 2024.
He informed that property owners who refused to voluntarily remove their illegal structures would pay for such removal by the government upon the expiration of the 14-day grace period, adding that such persons could also face prosecution as the situation may demand.