Lagos didn’t approve demolition of low cost estates – Commissioner

By Tope Musowo
Lagos

Lagos state Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Hon. Wasiu Anifowoshe has denied giving an approval to the Lagos state Building Investment Company (LBIC) Plc to demolish illegal structures across the low cost housing estates in the state.
Anifowoshe, who was speaking with journalists after a meeting by the state Assembly adhoc committee on housing, disclosed that all demolitions must be approved by the ministry.
The commissioner emphasised that “my ministry approves all demolitions in the state. We have so many papers in our ministry to that effect.
“All government parastatals in Lagos state come to the Ministry of Physical Planning for whatever demolition they want to do in the state. It is now meant for is to charge them or not.”
It would be recalled that some residents of the estates had written a petition to the assembly alleging the demolition of structures in the estate by the LBIC as supervised by the managing director, Folashade Folivi.
They had alleged that Folivi and her team did not listen to explanations from them and that the demolition was done indiscriminately across the estates.
Anifowoshe added that the law of the House empowers the ministry as the only agency to remove any illegal structure in the state.
“Any structure that is not done by our ministry is illegal. The demolition in Amuwo Odofin, Ogba Ijaiye, Ipaja, Isolo and others were not approved by the Ministry of Physical Planning.
“They were not done by my ministry and I don’t know who did it,” he said.
Chairman of committee, Hon. Ibrahim Layode, told journalists that the committee did not question Folivi as it should because she did not produce the necessary documents.
Layode stressed that the committee expected Folivi to attend the meeting with the Memorandum of Understanding of the company.
“Mrs. Folashade Folivi did not follow the MoU of the company with the demolition and contravened the law of her company,” he said.

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