On Sunday, the De Renaissance Patriots Foundation, a group of Lagos State indigenes, asked Governor Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu not to remove Adeniji-Adele Housing Scheme residents without making suitable plans.
Recall that the Lagos State Government said that it has completed a plan to transfer tenants of the 900 housing units at Adeniji Adele because the estate’s location is underwater.
The organisation expressed alarm over the proposed move, citing previous government policies that had resulted in indigenes being displaced from their ancestral land with nowhere to go.
The group’s declaration, headlined ‘The relocation and rehabilitation of Lagos Island Community’, was signed by its President and Secretary General, Prince Adelani Adeniji-Adele and Mr Yomi Tokosi.
It reads:
“We want to know how and where you are relocating the people to and the nature of the relocation you plan to do. Otherwise, many indigenes are seeing what you are doing as an effort to displace them from their land whereas they have no other place to go.
“In view of the above, De Renaissance Patriots Foundation resolved to inform you that nobody should relocate anybody until there is a place to take them to, which must be on a temporary relocation basis within Lagos Island and then in the end, ensure that the temporarily relocated people are truly returned to the newly reconstructed properties.
“We resolved to write you as a registered advocacy group representing the interest of indigenes of Lagos State and Lagos Island in particular in this particular instance. Specifically, we refer to the recent statements credited to your Special Adviser on E-GIS, Dr Olatunji Babajide, on your decisions in various regards, the most important is your decision to move and relocate residents of Adeniji-Adele Housing Scheme as you deem appropriate.
“We believe that most of those that will be affected by these actions are indigenes of the state, specifically Lagos State. As an advocacy group, our concern is piqued to ensure that this will not be another avenue to effect dramatic changes that will, in effect, see indigenes displaced and become minorities in this area.
“Therefore, it will be in the interest of the state government and all indigenous groups, most especially De Renaissance Patriots Foundation, to be involved in this exercise and to make the exercise as transparent as possible.”
“Mr Governor, in our reading from the release of Dr Babajide especially when he mentioned waterlogged areas, it behoves on us to look at the larger picture of things in the Lagos Island area.
“Our concern is just a reaction from what your operative gave as an excuse on the Adeniji-Adele issue. He quoted waterlogging as an issue as we interpreted it as a problem of drainage and that will bring up a lot of issues that you must address for the benefit of our people. The following highlights are germane and your reaction will be equally incidental to the intentions of your government and in some areas a character attestation.
“In our discourse so far, the reference of waterlogging by your side is worrisome in the following: “We know for a fact that flooding and waterlogging is a big issue in the Lagos Island and we further want to know what is exactly wrong with our drainage system in Lagos Island especially in areas of Idunmagbo and surrounding areas.
“It will also be nice to know the effects of the Ilubirin housing estates and the dredging arising therefrom.
“In the same vein, we ask the state government to inform the public what its intention is about the fact that Lagos Island is now under the sea level. Meaning Lagos is sinking, a lot of it has to do with indiscriminate dredging.
“That since development of Ilubirin is the effect on the drainage system of Lagos Island, it is safe to inform Your Excellency that bringing the issue of waterlogging by your government as reason adduced for carrying out this requires a clarification.
“We want to know how and where you are relocating the people to and the nature of the relocation you plan to do. Otherwise, many indigenes are seeing what you are doing as an effort to displace them from their land whereas they have no other place to go.”
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cc: Vanguard Ng
