On the 23rd of May 2024, the Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, disclosed that 750 properties were set for demolition by the federal government due to being situated along the gazetted pathway of the Lagos-Calabar coastal highway.
In little time after the announcement, a majority of property owners along the federally marked-out coastal front decried the horrid effects of the far-reaching nature of the mission; while some complained that the compensation to be paid by the government for the demolished structures was inadequate, others pleaded for more time to recover their investment equipment worth over $200 million.
While the government, again through Umahi, would later reveal that it had altered its plans to develop the project to save the telecommunications infrastructure and submarine cables along the highway and to safeguard against the displacement of six villages and three traditional kings within the Okun-Ajah community, the defence of the blanket right to the lawful ownership of immovable property in Nigeria as guaranteed by Section 43 of the Nigerian Constitution (1999) had again been breached for the umpteenth time. In essence, for the development of prosperity through property rights in Nigeria, the curious question remains: does the government have the right to demolish buildings in the face of a right to the ownership of property?
Since Nigeria makes up the highest case of homelessness globally with a reported count of more than 24 million displaced people, this article will examine the ever-growing practice of governmental demolition of properties; it will further fact find the legal recourse that can allow for the channelling of a sustainable pathway towards lesser arbitrary destruction of properties for the development of Nigerian lives and livelihood.
Powers of the Government To Demolish Buildings
Section 44 (3) of the Nigerian Constitution (as amended) vests the control of all minerals under any land in Nigeria in the Government of the Federation while Section 44 (2) (d) of the Constitution allows the government to enact any directive to compulsorily take possession of any immovable property that is in a dangerous state or is capable of causing injury to the health of humans, animals or plants.
Further, Section 1 of the Land Use Act (1978) vests all land comprised in the territory of each State of the Federation in the Governor of that State while Section 5 of the Act grants the Governor of a State the power to revise the rental time of a statutory right of occupancy at any time during the term of the occupancy.
Thus, through a combined reading of these extant legal provisions, it can be concluded that the government of a State or of the federation has the power to alter a structure through demolition for the purpose of extraction of minerals, reducing exposure to public health hazards or at any other time that the Governor of a State deems fit.
Following Due Process In The Demolition of Structures
Although, the prevailing laws of the federation grant the governments of the states and that of the federation the powers to the minerals under land, to pull down harmful structures and to revoke subsisting statutory rights of occupancy, due care must be taken so these powers are not flagrantly exercised.
Femi Falana, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, has argued that the demolition of structures should only occur in emergency situations, and under the due process of the law. He states that the destruction of a building due to trespass on a land by an interloper should not be carried out until the relevant agency of government has been duly notified, such as the Office of the Lagos State Special Taskforce on Land Grabbers. He also posits that action on land trespass should be taken to the respective state High Courts who have the jurisdiction to determine the case within 28 days.
Meanwhile, Professor Tunde Agboola, a key stakeholder in the Nigerian real estate industry has regretted the demolition of structures in Nigeria without due process. He has charged the government at all levels to strengthen the rule of law to ensure prospective property developers follow physical development rules and regulations; he has also advised the government to implement efficient monitoring and control mechanisms that will curb the illegal construction of houses on lands owned by the government.
A Way Forward
The prevailing reasons for the demolition of structures by the government often concern distressed buildings, lack of building plan approval, and encroachment on lands marked out for state development projects.
Real estate investors in Nigeria must therefore endeavour to conduct adequate title search as land purchaser and obtain the necessary land permits; the government at all levels should also follow due demolition process if and when necessary.
A combined use of these preventive measures will ensure greater sanity in Nigeria’s property sector thereby ensuring prosperity through practices that enhance property rights.
Doyin Olagunju is a legal practitioner and a fellow of the Ominira Initiative for Economic Advancement.
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