‘Illegal, Unconstitutional and Contemptuous’ — Falana Condemns Lagos Demolitions

Human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, has urged the Lagos State Government to immediately stop what he described as illegal and unconstitutional demolitions of waterfront properties across the state, citing multiple court rulings restraining such actions.

In a statement titled “Lagos State Government Must Halt Illegal Demolition of Waterfront Properties,” Falana recalled that on June 22, 2017, the Lagos High Court declared unlawful a series of government-ordered evictions that left more than 30,000 residents homeless.

Delivering the judgment, Justice Adeniyi Onigbanjo (now retired) ruled that the evictions violated the fundamental rights of the affected residents and awarded them ₦3.5 million in damages.

The court also ordered an end to future evictions, a decision that could have protected an estimated 270,000 residents from losing their waterfront homes to urban development.

The judge further directed the Lagos State Government to engage affected communities on resettlement plans in accordance with its urban renewal policy.

Falana also referenced a more recent ruling delivered on August 25, 2025, by Justice F.N. Ogazi of the Federal High Court in Lagos, which barred the Lagos State Government, its agencies, and the Nigeria Police Force from carrying out further demolitions or evictions in Makoko, Oko-Agbon, Sogunro, and Iwaya waterfront communities.

The order aimed to protect residents from what the court described as a “continuous threat and fear of imminent demolition,” following years of tension over alleged forceful land acquisition without compensation or resettlement.

Despite these court orders, Falana accused the Lagos State Government of continuing demolitions, describing it as “a brazen display of executive impunity.” He stated:

“The Lagos State Government has continued to demolish waterfront properties, including schools and medical centres. In the process of these reckless demolitions and evictions, some citizens have lost their lives while thousands of others have been displaced.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the Supreme Court clarified that the National Inland Waterways Authority is the only rightful and legal government agency with the powers to exclusively manage, direct, and control all activities on navigable waters and their rights of way throughout the country for inland navigation,” Falana said, citing Sections 8 and 9 of the NIWA Act.

He maintained that, since control of inland waterways rests solely with the Federal Government, the Lagos State Government’s demolitions in waterfront communities are “illegal, unconstitutional, and contemptuous,” describing them as “a glaring sabotage of the judicial arm of government.”

In urging compliance with the court rulings, Falana reminded Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of the Supreme Court’s decision in Military Governor of Lagos State v. Chief Emeka Ojukwu, in which even a military government obeyed a court order by restoring possession of disputed property.

“We are compelled to remind Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of this precedent,” Falana said, stressing that lawful governance requires respect for valid and subsisting court orders and the protection of the rights of affected residents.

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