LAGOS MOVES TO TACKLE ABANDONED BUILDINGS THROUGH COORDINATED ENFORCEMENT

The Lagos State Government says it is strengthening inter-agency collaboration to address the growing number of abandoned buildings across the state.

The Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Housing, Mr Abdul-Hafis Toriola, said this in a statement issued by the Deputy Director, Public Affairs of the ministry, Mr Ganiu Lawal, on Wednesday July 1 in Lagos. The initiative was said to be recommendation from an inter-agency stakeholders’ meeting convened by the ministry on Tuesday June 30 at Alausa, Ikeja.

Toriola said the initiative, which aligned with the state government’s THEMES Plus Development Agenda, was aimed at ensuring more habitable housing units, promoting sustainable urban development and enforcing existing laws on abandoned properties. He described abandoned buildings as a complex urban challenge with far-reaching implications for security, environmental health, neighbourhood development and residents’ wellbeing.

In her presentation, the General Manager, Lagos State Building Control Agency, Mrs Florence Gbaye, disclosed that the agency had identified and classified 759 abandoned buildings across the state as of June 20. She said many of the structures pose serious security, environmental and public health risks. She recommended the issuance of statutory notices to owners for the rehabilitation, completion and lawful use of the affected properties.

The stakeholders also reviewed the enforcement framework provided under Sections 37 to 43 of the Lagos State Real Estate Regulatory Authority (LASRERA) Law, 2022, which empowers the government to address abandoned properties that constitute public nuisance or threaten public safety.

Participants resolved to strengthen inter-agency collaboration through intelligence sharing, harmonization of existing datasets, joint inspections, coordinated enforcement operations, periodic review meetings, and sustained public enlightenment campaigns. They also agreed that all enforcement activities would strictly comply with existing laws and due process.

At the meeting were representatives of the Nigeria Police Force, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Lagos State Task Force, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Local Government, Chieftaincy Affairs and Rural Development, Lagos State Primary Health Care Board, and other relevant agencies.