Lagos Defends Trade Fair Demolition, Denies Ethnic Bias

The Lagos State Government has defended the demolition of illegal structures at the Trade Fair Complex in Ojo, stressing that the exercise is a technical enforcement of planning laws and not targeted at any ethnic group.

Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Olumide Oluyinka, made this clarification during an interview on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Thursday, following criticisms that the action was discriminatory.

> “That is not true. We have been to Owode Onirin, Idumota, and Ikeja. It has no ethnic correlation. The fact is that we just have to do our work. There is nothing ethnic here; it is purely technical,” Oluyinka said.

He explained that many buildings inside the complex were erected without statutory approvals and some violated basic safety standards.

“There has been a series of enforcement carried out on Lagos Island. I personally led a team that even touched the palace of a white cap chief. This is Nigeria for all of us,” he added.

The commissioner stressed that occupants had been given ample time to regularise their structures before demolition began, noting that government officials faced resistance while serving notices.

“I led a team there in March 2024. Between then and now is over a year and a half. We met with the Executive Director, and there was almost a confrontation, which is evidence that we were there,” he said.