Lagos communities have sought a sustainable city in the state that will accommodate all, whether rich or poor.

The representatives of the communities, particularly of Ayetoro and Owonronshoki, on Monday, urged the Lagos State Government to also compensate various victims of demolition.

The leader of the Oworonshoki Youth Forum, Opeyemi Ogunlami, sought compensation and government community engagement.

“You cannot displace people who have been living in a place like Oworonshoki for 40 years without any compensation. We don’t have power or military back up but in the community, we have voices pushing for something. Illiteracy and lack of information are also affecting some of our people. To date, of all demolished places, Oworonshoki is still standing. Although some people have given up people are still on it,” Ogunlami said while addressing the press on Monday in Ikeja.

He urged the representatives of the Lagos State Urban Renewal Agency on the need to have a “dialogue or meeting whether once in a month or six months in communities.”

The Secretary for the Ayetoro Community, close to the Third Mainland Bridge, Kenster Kudehinbu, said, “Now in Ayetoro, there is usually a flood that can come morning, afternoon and night, and it can be very devastating. There is nothing the community can do to stop the flooding but the government’s presence is needed. Also, the health centre in the community is poor. People are not feeling safe. And when they relocate people from there, they should compensate them.”

The Project Manager for Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, an international non-governmental organisation, that was liaising with the communities, Remi Ihejirika, while speaking, said the organisation launched a ‘Just City Lagos Project’ to advocate democratic urbanisation in Lagos.

Ihejirika said the FES effort was to establish “a social democratic perspective to urban policy making by empowering voices from the ground and by linking progressive actors to policymakers,” saying it was important to have a safe city with affordable housing, adequate water supply, and good transport system.

Speaking on the spate of demolition in Lagos, she said, “The government should compensate them. If you’re going to demolish, you should inform people. It’s the government’s responsibility to provide houses for the poor.”

The state government had in July said it was only removing shanties and criminal hideouts in the area.

At the weekend, demolition also rocked Festac Phase II, Abule Odo, Amuwo Odofin in Lagos. Various estates within the LGA were pulled down by officials of the Federal Housing Authority for allegedly contravening housing and development regulations.

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