DAYO AYEYEMI and TOLA ADENUBI write on the issues surrounding the construction of super highway in Lagos.
Weeks after the federal government commenced the construction of the first phase of the 700-kilometer Lagos–Calabar Coastal Highway, residents of waterfront communities of Iru, Igbo Efon and Ajah, among others on the Lekki-Epe corridor, recently took to the street, to protest the imminent demolition of their buildings by the Lagos state government.
Saturday Tribune noticed that some houses, marked as shanties in the axis, by the state authority, have already been evacuated because they were deemed to be on the Right of Way of the super highway, designed to extend through nine states with two spurs leading to the Northern States.
With the noticeable speed of work being done on the project, it is certain that more houses will have to give way, soon.
The clearest indication of this is the ultimatum issued by the state government to big businesses that would be affected in the next round of the path-clearing.
Property owners like Landmark Hotel and Event Centre, Beach Resorts, Kid’s and Bay Area, Members Area, Lagos Beach Club Hang-out and other multi-million naira investments along the corridor, were given seven days to move or face demolition.
Since the notice from the Lagos State Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, dated March 18, 2024, went into circulation, the waterfront communities have lost its usual calmness as residents and business owners are running helter-skelter, to save their investments.
Compensation coming but…
When Saturday Tribune contacted the Lagos State Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, an impeccable source who did not want his name in print, explained that though the state government had served owners of affected property a 7-day ultimatum, the demolition exercise, would not be immediate.
On the number of houses the next round of demolition would affect, the source said it was too early to give a figure, stating that enumeration of properties was still ongoing.
“The enumeration is still ongoing, so we don’t know the number of houses that will be affected.
“The notice given, is according to the law guiding such exercise and does not mean that evacuation of property would commence immediately,” the source said.
Besides, he said government was embarking on stakeholders’ meetings to sensitise residents and leaders of affected communities.
“There will still be stakeholders’ meeting with the residents,” he said.
According to him, property owners already served notices are expected to compile their documents and approach the Lagos Land Bureau for compensation.
“Our lives being taken away”
For coastal towns like Iru, Eti-Osa and others situated not too far from the Atlantic Ocean, the construction of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal road is coming with huge sacrifices that might be too much for them to bear.
During a visit to the palace of the paramount traditional ruler of Iru Land, Oba Abdulwasiu Omogbolahan Lawal Abisogun II, the Oniru of Iru Land by top officials of the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, led by the Commissioner, Mrs. Toke Benson-Awoyinka, residents of Iru lamented the disruption that the road construction would bring to their means of livelihood.
“Even though we are happy that the federal government in collaboration with the state government is constructing the Lagos-Calabar Coastal road, our concern is tied to how we will have to survive while the construction would last.
“We are majorly fishermen here in Iru while some of our children also operate ferry and tourism services. Once the construction begins in full steam, some of the beaches will be cordoned off or shut. There will be limited access to the waterways due to the construction works. How are we going to survive?
“Without fishing and tourism activities, some of us don’t know what we will be doing. The Oniru Beach is a major revenue spinner for the Iru community and the Lagos State Government. We have been told that the beach will be shut during the road construction period. We don’t know how long the construction will take place. We don’t know how long the waterways and beaches will be shut. It’s like taking our lives away from us. It’s a sacrifice we are willing to take but for how long” representatives of the residents wailed during the visit.
Government assures.
Addressing their concerns, Benson-Awoyinka assured them that proactive measures would be taken by both the federal and state governments to mitigate the challenges while asking the people to be patient with the government as the coastal road will also bring development to the area though at a price.
She assured that the Lagos State Government would not leave them to bear the burden alone and promised members of the Iru Community that their concerns about the road project would be presented to Governor Babajide Sanwoolu, who in turn, would communicate same to the federal government, through appropriate quarters.
“Everything that we have discussed here today will be taken back to the governor of Lagos State and whatever needs to be done will be done. We will look into how to get timely compensation for affected persons because the Lagos State Government will not leave the community members to bear any burden that comes with this project alone”, she added
Demolition blues.
Meanwhile, about 500 residents of Oke-Egan community, Eleko Area of Ajah in Lagos, some days ago stormed the state House of Assembly complex, demanding compensation for the demolition of their houses.
They displayed banners with bold inscriptions and placards on their quest and barricaded the Lagos House main gate in the early hours.
“We have been demoralised, nowhere to go. We want our property back. Our hearts bleed; we now roam the streets with nowhere to stay; our children are crying; President Bola Tinubu, your children are homeless; Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, please come to our rescue,” were some of the inscriptions on their placards.
One of the protesters, Dr Taiwo Alalade, lamented that her entire family, including three toddlers and her elderly mother, had been sleeping out in the open after their house was demolished.
“One of us had four buildings here. We have all the papers. They demolished all four buildings. Now, I don’t have anywhere to go. Sanwo-Olu should help us so that they will stop the demolition. We were not informed before they started demolishing our houses. We don’t know these people at all,” she said
She claimed to be back from work, to meet her house in ashes.
“This shirt I put on had been on me for three days now. All my brothers and sisters don’t have anywhere to go. All our belongings are missing. Where do they want us to go? Where do we start from?”
She said the state government has succeeded in rendering residents of the community homeless.
Pastor Abiodun Ajayi, whose house in the area was also demolished, said it was painful for someone’s house to be demolished in his presence.
According to him, his house was the first to be demolished, saying he couldn’t take anything out of the house.
“They got there at 3.00 a.m., and they started the demolition by 5.00 a.m. They came with thugs and we could not talk. We have been coming here, we wrote letters and Oba Akiolu of Lagos also wrote a letter on our behalf, because we want to be lawful,” Ajayi said.
Addressing the protesters, Majority Leader, Lagos House of Assembly, Hon. Noheem Adams, accompanied by his colleagues – Oladipupo Ajomale, Fatai Mojeed and Tijani Suraju, commended them for their peaceful conduct.
Noheem said their letter would be presented to the Speaker of the House, Mudashiru Obasa, adding that the needful would be done to bring respite to them.
History in the making?
Even as affected residents of Lagos groan, the administration of Bola Tinubu is celebrating the project as monumental.
Presidential aide, Temitope Ajayi, in a well-circulated opinion piece, praised the pace of the project since its approval by the Federal Executive Council.
He disclosed that the contractor had moved to site to build “what will be a monumental civil engineering project that Nigeria has ever seen”.
He further stated, “Since the construction of the iconic Third Mainland Bridge that stretched over 11 kilometres across the lagoon, the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road will usher in a new era of ambitious road infrastructural development projects in Nigeria.
“The Third Mainland Bridge, one of the longest bridges in the world was completed in 1990 by the military administration of President Ibrahim Babangida.
“When completed, the 700km long coastal highway will also enter the world record book, taking its place among other iconic coastal routes like the Wild Atlantic Highway in Ireland and the Pacific Coastal Highway in the United States.
“The first phase of the new 700km highway that will run through the nine coastal states is the 47.47km section beginning from Victoria Island.
“Starting from Ahmadu Bello Way, Victoria Island in Lagos, the coastal road will pass through the Lekki Deep Seaport, Ogun, Ondo, Delta, Bayelsa, Cross River and Akwa-Ibom states.
“One of the fascinating and interesting features of the coastal road is how it will compress the distance between Lagos and Ondo states.
For instance, the distance from Ibeju-Lekki in Lagos to Araromi in Ondo State is about 50km along the coast. This distance translates to about an hour journey. From Araromi to Ore, a major connecting hub in Ondo State is about another 50km, whereas the existing route from Ibeju-Lekki to Ore currently in use by motorists, is 150km” he claimed.
Despite the positive appraisal, the cost of the project and its financing is a bone of contention in public domain.
Concrete project?
Speaking on the ambitious project, Minister of Works, David Umahi, revealed it would be built using concrete pavement.
The decision has been linked with the sudden rise in cement price, but the minister has denied that the project had anything to do with the hike in cement price.
He also mentioned that since the contract was awarded, a significant progress had been made, leading to the completion of 1.3 kilometres of the required filling.
According to the minister, the expressway would pay for itself, adding that it would guarantee quick return on investment.
He hinted that the federal government was already liaising with the state governments to acquire land in each of the nine states the expressway passes through, to provide tourism, including five-star hotels.
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