Lagos Begins Demolition of 57 Distressed Buildings

Gboyega Akinsanmi
The Lagos State Government has disclosed that it had started demolishing 57 buildings that were classified distressed and derelict as a measure to stem the rate of building collapse across the state.

The General Manager of Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA), Mr. Lekan Shodehinde, spoke with journalists after some distressed buildings were demolished on Lagos Island yesterday.

The agency demolished a three-storey building located at 152, Adeniji Adele Street; a two-storey building located at 54 Aroloya Street; another three-storey building at 3, Alanaku Street and 31 others on Lagos Island.

Of the 57 buildings already marked for demolition, the agency disclosed that at least 34 were located on Lagos Island, thereby warning against developing buildings without complying with standard rules.

Officials of LASBCA, escorted by armed policemen stormed the Island in the morning to begin demolition of the affected buildings.

After speaking with journalists, the general manager, said the demolition was under the first phase of the demolition of distressed buildings approved by Governor Akinwunmi Ambode.
Shodehinde, said the buildings had been distressed overtime and that government had served owners of the structures notices.

He said the exercise was being carried out to stem tides of collapsed buildings in the state, saying that government would not fold its arm and allow buildings to collapse indiscriminately across the metropolis.

He disclosed that 13 buildings were being demolished on Monday and that the exercise would last for two weeks.
Shodehinde disclosed that the agency had identified 114 distressed buildings that needed to be demolished across the metropolis, adding that the others would be demolished during the second phase of the exercise.

Shodehinde explained that once a distressed building had been demolished by the government, the owner would be given 90 days to pay the demolition cost, failure for which government would seize the land.

He said before a building would be demolished, the owner would be given ample time to remedy the situation, which included subjecting the property to integrity test.
The LASBCA boss stated that if after the test had been carried out and the property was found to be unsafe, it would be demolished.
However, the buildings being demolished ranged from two-storey to four-storey buildings.