Justice
delayed is not a justice denial as Honourable Justice Onigbanjo delivered his
landmark rulings between the Lagos State Government and the waterfronts across
Lagos
Residents
of Otodo Gbame and other evicted waterfront communities in Lagos state on
Wednesday 21 June, 2017, celebrated the best way they could with those who
defended them; Justice and Empowerment Initiatives – Nigeria (JEI) and the
Nigerian Slum and Informal Settlement (Federation), the final judgment given by
Honourable Justice Onigbanjo of the Lagos State High Court in a fundamental
rights enforcement case brought in October 2016.
The
case was brought before the court after the Lagos state Government stated its
intention to demolish all waterfront communities, citing frivolous reasons such
as kidnapping and armed robbery attacks.
The
case was brought before the court after the Lagos state Government stated its
intention to demolish all waterfront communities, citing frivolous reasons such
as kidnapping and armed robbery attacks.
Honourable
Justice Onigbanjo delivered his landmark ruling as hundreds of urban poor residents
men, women, and children from waterfronts across Lagos state waited patiently
inside and outside the courtroom.
Relying
on the Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure) Rules, 2009, Justice
Onigbanjo said he found evictions without adequate notice and resettlement to
be cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment in violation of the right to dignity
enshrined in Section 34 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria and Article 5 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
The
court also ordered the Lagos State Government to immediately consult and
resettle displaced residents and he issued a permanent injunction restraining
further evictions without consultation and resettlement of affected persons.
“The
final judgment delivered by Honourable Justice Onigbanjo is a huge step forward
in the quest for justice for Otodo Gbame evictees and brings relief to over
270,000 residents of other waterfront communities in Lagos that have been
living under the threat of eviction,” JEI and Federation said in a
statement signed by Megan S. Chapman, Akinrolabu Samuel, Bimbo Oshobe and Sani
Mohammed.
“Moreover,
the judgment sets important precedent in Nigeria by finding that evictions
without adequate notice and resettlement violate the right to dignity of the
human person, an absolute right, which has no exceptions in the Nigerian
Constitution or in well-established international human rights law.
“As
Nigerians across Lagos, the country, and the world celebrate this landmark
judgment, we call on the Lagos State Government to demonstrate a commitment to
the rule of law and democracy by swiftly commencing consultation with Otodo
Gbame evictees to remedy their homelessness.
“Knowing
that wholesale resettlement is costly, we also call on the Lagos State
Government to enter into dialogue with residents of other waterfront
communities to plan for in
situ upgrading that can simultaneously improve the quality of life
of residents and address Government concerns, embracing international best
practice and avoiding unnecessary and costly evictions,” JEI and Federation
added.
The
threat to the Lagos waterfronts began when Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi
Ambode announced to the media on 9 October 2016 the Government’s intention to
“start demolishing all shanties on waterfronts across the State within 7 days,”
citing recent kidnapping incidents as the purported justification,”
“Based
on mapping and profiling done by the Nigerian Slum/Informal Settlement
Federation, we identified at least 40 communities that fell under this threat
and estimated over 300,000 residents were at risk of imminent eviction.
“Accordingly,
more than 20 member communities of the Federation joined together to write to
Governor Ambode calling for retraction of the threat and requesting for
dialogue to explore alternatives to eviction.
“Two
peaceful protests brought thousands of waterfront residents to the gates of the
Governor’s office and the State House of Assembly, but to no avail. To the
contrary, the Lagos State Government proceeded to demolish Ilubirin on 15
October 2016. Finally, the threatened waterfronts had no option but to proceed
to court to enforce their fundamental rights”.
On
7 November 2016, Honourable Justice Onigbanjo granted a temporary injunction
restraining the Lagos State Government and the Nigerian Police Force from
proceeding with any demolition of the waterfronts or eviction of their
inhabitants. Despite this order, Otodo Gbame community, an ancestral Egun
fishing settlement in Lekki was demolished and over 30,000 residents forcibly
evicted on 9-10 November 2016 by arson and a bulldozer working in the dead of night.
On
26 January 2017, Honourable Justice Onigbanjo issued an interim ruling holding
that these evictions were in violation of the residents’ right to dignity and
ordered the Respondents to enter into mediation with the residents to explore
alternatives to eviction. The court-ordered mediation failed, however, when the
Lagos State Government unilaterally pulled out of the process after starting to
evict the remaining 5,000 residents of Otodo Gbame on 17-21 March 2017.
On
9 April 2017, the Lagos State Government led the most violent demolition in
recent history that completely displaced all remaining residents of Otodo
Gbame. Arriving without notice around 5am, the Government’s Task Force chased
residents from their beds and into boats on the Lagos Lagoon using live bullets
and teargas, while systematically setting their houses on fire.
At
least 5 evictees were shot, including 20-year-old Daniel Aya who died from a
gunshot to the neck.
The
demolition of Otodo Gbame has been broadly condemned as a forced eviction and a
gross violation of human rights, including by the United Nations Special
Rapporteur on Adequate Shelter, Amnesty International, the Norwegian Ambassador
to Nigeria, and countless others.
