Lagos says 80% of buildings in Lekki lack approval

The Lagos State government has said 80 per cent of the buildings within the Ibeju-Lekki axis have no approval.

This disclosure was made known by Oluyinka Olumide, commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Lagos while speaking with newsmen.

“Just last week Thursday and Friday, myself and the team were in the Ibeju Lekki and Epe axis and you would agree with me that anybody passing through that corridor would see a lot of estates marked”.

“We went there, and I can tell you that from what we saw, over 80 per cent of them do not have approval,” Olumide said.

The state government has been facing backlash for the demolition of buildings and shanties across the state, with the recent one at Mende, Maryland.

Tokunbo Wahab, commissioner for environment in Lagos, has repeatedly said the demolished structures contravened the city’s masterplan.

He stated that they were never approved by the relevant agencies, and blocked drainage channels which resulted in flooding frequently experienced.

Olumide, stating the procedures for obtaining approval, noted that a layout permit cannot be obtained if it is not zoned for the purpose it was designed for or for the purpose it was being requested.

Meanwhile, Wahab, on Sunday, said owners of recently demolished property in Maryland had been served notices since 2021.

“We are not just doing demolitions. The law allows us to remove encumbrances on the right of way of the drainage channels,” Wahab said on Channels Television.

The government has continued to issue notices to owners of buildings with no approval while some have been demolished upon the expiration of the notice.

“So, you can see all these layers, but people still go ahead to start advertising. Some have even gone to the extent of displaying the sizes they want to sell. Imagine someone in the diaspora who wants to send money without any knowledge. Then, no approval is eventually gotten”.

“Even if they pass the assignment and the survey to them, we would not grant the individual permit, because that area is not zoned for that purpose,” the commissioner explained”.