Trade Fair Demolition: Obi’s, Others Hues And Cries, By Tunde Abatan
One constant feature of the Constitution of Nigeria with its amendments since the promulgation of the 1979 constitution which ushered in the defunct second republic is that it vested the power over lands in all states of the Federation on state governors who have the power to allocate lands in their territory and issue certificates of occupancy, C of O to beneficiaries.
This was made possible by the amended Land Use Act 2004 as contained in Chapter 5 subsection[1] with the provision that urban areas shall be under the control and management of the Governor of each of the 36 states of the Federation.
Section (b) states that all other land shall subject to this be under the control and management of the local governments within their areas of jurisdiction.
There is also the Land Use Allocation Committee in Part11 (b) which confer rights on the state Governor to act in connection with any matter on issue of statutory Rights of Occupancy, Customary rights of Occupancy, Certificate of Occupancy and also the power to acquire land in the overall public interest.
State governments alone determine which land is for what purpose and empower its relevant agencies to allocate and control such spaces.
It is in this regard that states establishe both the Town planning authorities and Building agencies as it fits their peculiarities.
With this provisions in mind one is surprised that the citizens and leaders who are in a position to know and the political elite choose to gloss over this incontrovertible provisions on land matters but choose to play to the gallery and politicized issues.
This is why one is surprised about the emotions, sentiments, politics and condemnation that greeted the on -going demolition of illegal structures in places considered to have violated both the environment and planning laws of Lagos State.
It is expected that a state which reasonable size is below the sea level would enact laws for land use and allocation for specific purposes taking into consideration its peculiar nature.
Without being unduly partisan or judgmental, regimes can choose to implement and or enforce laws based on exigencies of the moment.
Wahab Dosunmu, the energetic Commissioner for Environment in Lagos State has often been in the line of fire when he embarked on sanitizing buildings that stood in the way of Drainage constructed to ensure free flow of flood during rainy season.
This responsibility has often been overlooked by successive governments in the state either for lack of political will or choose to embrace haphazard planning which has contributed to making Lagos geographical landscape not befitting of a 21st century fastest growing city in Africa with its challenges.
Beside the claimed violation of existing Town planning laws, the need to control the perennial flooding in Lagos is tenable by the administration irrespective of the party in power.
Recall that when the exercise started early this year in Lekki, Maryland, Mende, Ajah and other areas leading to demolition of houses and structures which government claims were erected on flood paths, it challenged those whose properties were demolished to come forward with proofs of genuine approvals by relevant authorities in the state.
As at the time of writing this article why has there been no single case instituted in courts in the state challenging the demolitions which truly dislodged home and property owners across the state especially flood prone areas like Lekki and environs.
But then since Nigerians especially politicians have the natural penchant for politicizing all issues from the important to the mundane, one is not surprised that Peter Obi, Labour Party, LP presidential candidate and a man who wanted to preside over a geographical entity called Nigeria with her diversities last week gathered politicians, senators, Rep members and other stakeholders from the South East of the country on a well publicised visit to International Trade Fair Complex to sympathize with victims and whip of sentiments to score cheap political points and in so doing also abuse indigen ship sentiments not easily divorced from the action of the state government.
The state government did claim that the recent demolitions took place to remove structures considered illegal and an obstruction to Lagos planning laws as it considered fit.
Without denying his right to rise in defence of the people, the wisdom in accusing Lagos government of victimising the Igbo speaking traders in the complex speaks volumes of the ethnic mindset propelled at every opportunity by a fellow who joined others in making Ndigbo victims on all issues about Nigeria.
Does it mean that if he becomes President he will turn his eyes from violators of the law especially if they are his kinsmen.
Obi not only visited with only Igbo politicians, he condemned the exercise saying it was targeted to Igbos business survival .
Again, is Igno business survival dependent on violations of existing laws of the state they ply their trade.
Does he intend to turn vices to virtues all in the name of defending perceived persecuted fellow Igbos anywhere they are found all over the country and beyond?
As is usual with him, he never commented negatively against Imo, Enugu and his own state of Anambra when similar exercises were carried out, but curiously raised the stakes high and promoted belief of ethnic persecution in Lagos.
Obi’s attitude and the effusions of fellow Senators and House of Representative members who accompanied him, has further equipped ill informed commentators on national issues to present Ndigbo as traditional victims on various issues in Nigeria’s sixty five years of the countries chequered history.
While it is incontestable that Igbos of South East extraction dominates and control business activities within Trade Fair Complex and even determine leadership of its various associations to the detriment of other ethnic groups, playing the victims card all the time, informs other ethnic groups tribal perceptions of Ndigbo clamor for power as selfish and with hidden agenda .
Neither did Obi and his crowd of politicians ignorant of the provisions of extant laws on state planning which remains the exclusive preserves of Governor’s whichever party that is in power. This becomes worrisome since Obi himself carried out similar exercise during his tenure as Anambra Governor. If he has the courage to enforce laws in his state, is he asking his fellow Ndigbo to flout existing laws of their hosts anywhere they are in Nigeria and beyond?
If Obi is aware of this laws as a former governor but choose to encourage disobedience, it is then obvious that he was being hypocritical and unnecessarily ethnitising and politicizing issues for what suspicious advantages especially since he is aspiring to lead Nigeria which only votes of other Nigerians can enable him.
Obi also harped on claims of the traders obtaining permit from the complex regulatory body instead of the state Town planning and building regulatory agencies under whose jurisdiction markets, estates and other development under whose permission and authority lies.
His comments of willful destruction of Ndigbo businessmen properties shows clear denial of what he knows as a former state governor since all planning agencies in the states falls under the supervision of Physical Planning authorities.
Wahab the Lagos environment boss said as much when he declared that the state was enforcing its Town planning laws.
Now ,the question left unanswered by Senators Enyinnaya Abaribe,Tony Nwoye, Victor Imeh and others who accompanied Obi to the Trade Fair Complex is , does it mean that as elected representatives of their people, they aren’t aware of extant laws which govern Town planning in their states.
Assuming they are ignorant, which is not an excuse in the face of law, on what basis did Obi- the leading crusader carried out demolitions of structures in Anambra when he was Governor?
Has any group from Anambra challenged Governor Chukwuma Soludo who recently demolished Innoson Motors headquarters in Nnewi ?.
If not unnecessarily politicizing delicate issues like environmental orderliness to protect lives and properties, which remains the essence of any authority in power .
When established laws are allowed to be violated without enforcement, then haphazard development will take place without dire consequences for environmental planning and control.
It is also instructive that Governor Alex Oti of Abia state who as incumbent state chief executive is in a position to know politicised the issue by accusing Lagos state of demolishing Igbo business adding derisively,
.“I have no business with Lagos, I’m not competing with Lagos. My competition is China and Dubai. By the time I’m done with Aba, Lagos will look like a village,” . In other words he knows there’s arbitrariness in Lagos which ruling government is trying to correct.
Otti declared that while some governments are busy pulling down shops and frustrating traders, his vision is to transform Aba into Africa’s Dubai — a global hub for commerce, innovation, and manufacturing”..
The failure of complainants in Lekki, Maryland, Mende and other places where sizeable Nigerians of Yoruba extraction and others also lost properties, to challenge demolitions in court points to the needless efforts by the Senators and others to ethnicise and tribalise issues of serious environmental concern in a state fighting hard to mitigate flooding.
While it is impossible that corrupt civil servants and others have soiled their hands in granting illegal approvals which they knew one government will emerge one day to sanitize the environment.
Yes, it is painful that millions of assets have been lost, the on going sanitization of Lagos Town planning laws should serve as a lesson to others.
While the existing mutual distrust between Yoruba and Igbos in the politics of the country is undeniable, it is unreasonable for indigenes of either tribe to allow itself to run foul of the law of its host state and turn around to accuse it of victimising it for purely political vendetta.
Politicians with natural penchant for stirring up emotions based on pure political sentiments and always playing the victims card is becoming old fashioned in a diverse country like Nigeria.
Those who aspire to lead the country must rise above ethnic and tribal sentiments.
This attitude will do more harm to their aspiration as others would distrust giving power to an aggrieved tribal leader with his propensity to victimise those from other ethnic groups who entrust him with power.
Politicians who want to rule a geographical entity called Nigeria with its entrenched diversities should refrain from sentimental emotions all in their bid to playing the victim card which couldn’t help their case.
Obi and others should do more to encourage other dominant and minority groups in the country that they are safe from their ingrained domineering and selfish attitudes if power is entrusted in their care.
