Community leaders and displaced residents on Wednesday converged on the Ikeja Under-Bridge area of Lagos to protest the ongoing demolitions and alleged forced evictions in waterfront and low-income communities, including Makoko, Owode Onirin and Oworonshoki.
The protesters accused the Lagos State Government of carrying out demolitions without adequate notice, compensation or resettlement plans for affected residents.
We have observed that the demonstrators occupied strategic sections of the under-bridge, drawing the attention of commuters and motorists plying the busy Ikeja axis.
They were seen carrying banners and placards with bold inscriptions such as “Stop Forced Evictions Now,” “Makoko Lives Matter,” “Demolition Without Resettlement Is Injustice,” “Urban Renewal, Not Urban Removal,” “Homes Not Rubble,” and “Housing Is a Human Right.”