Slums: Group tasks Lagos, judiciary on tenure security

A non-governmental organisation, Justice and Empowerment Initiatives Nigeria has called on the Lagos state government and judiciary to guarantee security of tenure, stating that Lagos state government, the police and the judiciary have done little to curb threats, protect lives and properties of slum dwellers, and have failed to ensure security of tenure for vulnerable residents.
Spokesman of the group, Magan Chapman who spoke to Blueprint at the weekend in Abuja disclosed that “slum communities across Lagos are facing an uptick in threats to the security of tenure, thereby imposing fear and insecurity on slum dwellers.”
Chapman said recent months have seen violence and mass arson meted out on communities such as Otto Ilogbo in Ebute Meta west and OtodoGbame in Lekki.
According to him, other communities such as Ajeromi in ijoraBadia also faces threats of eviction aimed at forcing them to pay extortionate ‘ratification fees’ to land owning families seeking to control the direction of Lagos real estate as regards slums.
According to the spokesman, Justice and Empowerment Initiatives is currently working with a federation of over forty slum communities called Rural and Urban Development initiative RUDI, which he said have come together in solidarity to combat threats of evictions and promote their mutual housing goals for security and development.
He said RUDI member communities have embarked on a community-led, citywide slum profiling exercise in Lagos, which captures key data from slums and helps them identify shared priorities.
“From the profiling completed so far, land tenure has been the most important priority for 6O% of slum communities,” he said, stating that it ranked highest priority over all other key issues including electricity, housing, water/drainage, sanitation and schools among other needs.