The Lagos State government has criticised the report of
the Amnesty International and the Social and Economic Rights Action Centre on
the eviction of Ijora-Badia East residents.
The State State Attorney General and Commissioner for
Justice,Ade Ipaye reiterated the administration’s commitment to the welfare of
residents and the protection of their rights.
Ipaye described majority of the people in Badia East as
illegal residents, who admitted that they moved to the area because of the
rehabilitation of the National Theatre complex by the Federal Government.
He said: “Illegal settlements, unapproved buildings and
unsanitary conditions cannot be justified, as these may end up in painful
evictions or demolitions.”
Ipaye said the area is a swampy strip of land and the
least developed in the community, adding that it was cleared in 2003.
He said: “The area was subsequently turned into a refuse
dump by illegal residents, who erected shanties there. The area grew gradually
into a small community characterised by all the negative features of an urban
slum, including unstructured shelter arrangements, regular flooding, unhealthy
environment, insecurity and all sorts of nefarious activities.”
Ipaye said the government repossessed the area in
furtherance of its policy to provide affordable estates with good
infrastructure for the people.
He said: “Before the state embarked on the development of
1,008 housing units in the area, Governor Babatunde Fashola, on April 26 and
October 2, 2012, led top government officials to the area to sensitise
residents and had several stakeholders’ meeting afterwards concerning the
government’s intention.
“The area of Badia in contention is one of the nine areas
identified as slums and earmarked for regeneration under the World Bank-funded
Lagos Metropolitan Development and Governance Project (LMDGP).”
On alleged cases of under-aged prisoners, the
commissioner said the state has put mechanisms in place to identify under aged
defendants at every level of the criminal process.
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Society
Lagos state government continue ur gud works but be consistent in all honesty wit d works.God bless Lagos Eko o ni baje ko baje ti
ReplyDeletePls lagos state continue ur good works white folks a looking for slums for there amusement they paid the price for there's we should also pay ours
ReplyDeleteThat wud be great if the govt demolish dat and build an estate like 1008 housing,,but it must me lesser cost for rentage so pple dat are homeless can easily rent an apartment....
ReplyDelete