Lagos explains why it tore down 13 buildings at the Ajao estate – The Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA) has stated why it tore down 13 buildings in the Ajao Estate area of the state.
The government said that the buildings that were torn down didn’t have the right permits and were built on illegal land.
This was said by Arc. Gbolahan Owodunni Oki, the General Manager of LASBCA, at a press briefing in Ikeja, where he emphasised that all buildings in Lagos State must follow the laws that govern physical growth and building construction.
Oki said that the owners of the houses that were torn down not only built on illegal land but also broke the law about building in the airport area by putting up structures that were taller than what was allowed.
Several peace talks didn’t work
The General Manager of LASBCA said that the demolition work done by the agency’s enforcement and compliance team was done to make sure that buildings in Lagos State are planned, built, and kept up to high safety standards so that lives and property are not lost.
He also said that the removal of the 13 illegal structures shows that the state government puts the lives of its residents first. He said that the action of the government and the ongoing demolition of several other illegal structures in different parts of the state will send a strong message to stubborn builders and to all residents of the state.
He said that the agency has been sending letters to the property owners since 2016 telling them to leave the area, but they haven’t done so. He said, “Several meetings have been held to talk about peace, but they have turned a deaf ear, thinking that the government can’t do anything.”
Oki said that the Lagos State Government would not stand by and let its people die because someone didn’t do what they needed to do and get the right permits for their property.
Residents who follow the rules won’t be targeted for demolition
Oki told the owners of the properties near the buildings that were torn down that the government’s move was not aimed at law-abiding people in the area.
He told builders and property owners that they shouldn’t start building projects without first getting permission from the right government bodies. This would prevent the loss of lives and property.
He said that the first step in building a house is to get a planning permit from the Lagos State Physical Planning Permit Authority (LASPPPA) and then bring copies of the accepted planning permit to the Lagos State Building Control Agency.
He said that in the past, the management of FAAN had tried to talk to the owner of the illegal buildings through radio shows and ads, but none of those attempts worked. “FAAN and LASBCA have been going there and putting stop-work orders on the illegal buildings for more than 2 years now, but no one has paid attention,” he said.
Buildings built on land that the government had bought were torn down
The General Manager of the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Ngwu Hycienth, also spoke. He said that the land where the buildings were built was bought for public use as part of the Muritala International Airport.
He said that FAAN found encroachments on the land in 2015 and told the right people about them. Hycienth said again that the International Standard for Airports says that no building should be built close to an airport’s outer fence and that there are height limits for buildings near an airport.
So, the FAAN General Manager thanked the management of LASBCA and the state government for taking action against errors and putting things back to normal at the airport, which will save people’s lives.
