By Ologeh Joseph Chibu
In a recent interview, Dr. Oluyinka Olumide, the Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development in Lagos State, made a concerning revelation about the building plans in higbrow Lekki.
He said a staggering 80% of them lack official approval.
This appears to showcase the crisis of urban and regional planning in Lagos.
Olumide described his recent visit to the Ibeju Lekki and Epe areas, where numerous estates are conspicuously marked.
He said despite their prominence, a large majority of these estates have not undergone the necessary approval processes.
He said, “Just last week Thursday and Friday, myself and the team were in the Ibeju Lekki and Epe axis and you would agree with me that anybody passing through that corridor would see a lot of estates marked. We went there, and I can tell you that from what we saw, over 80 per cent of them do not have approval.”
He explained the typical procedure for approval, emphasizing the importance of understanding the zoning regulations before any development begins. However, many individuals purchase agricultural land without awareness of its designated use, leading to unauthorized construction.
Furthermore he explained, “The procedure to get approval is first to get the planning information, as to what those areas have been zoned for. In this case, what we have is agricultural land, and people now go to their families to buy agricultural land. Of course, those lands would be sold because those families do not know the use such land would be put to.
“The next thing to do is the fence permit. If you missed the earlier information on not knowing the area zoning, at the point of getting the fence permit, you would be able to detect what the area is zoned for. After that, the layout permits a large expense of land follows.”
Highlighting the layers of approval required, Olumide lamented how some developers proceed with advertising and selling properties without obtaining the necessary permits. Even those who engage in due diligence abroad may find themselves unable to obtain approval upon returning to Nigeria.
“So, you can see all these layers, but people still go ahead to start advertising. Some have even gone to the extent of displaying the sizes they want to sell. Imagine someone in the diaspora who wants to send money without any knowledge. Then, no approval is eventually gotten. Even if they pass the assignment and the survey to them, we would not grant the individual permit, because that area is not zoned for that purpose,” the commissioner emphasized.
Jide Odusolu, CEO of Octo5 Holdings, added insight into the historical context of the Lekki Peninsula’s master plan. Initially established under Bola Tinubu’s governance and updated during Babatunde Fashola’s tenure, the plan ensured that large estates adhered to strict regulations. However, post-2010, rapid development led to a distortion of these plans, with newer estates circumventing established regulations to avoid infrastructure obligations.
Odusolu highlighted the burden placed on developers to provide infrastructure without government support, coupled with punitive taxes. This, he argued, disincentivizes compliance and contributes to chaotic development.
He stated, “The Lekki peninsula had a master plan which was originally launched when Bola Tinubu was the governor and updated under Babatunde Fashola. Almost all large estates along the Lekki corridor, especially those developed between 2000-2008, have approved layout plans. It was obligatory and rigidly enforced by the state government.
“However, starting in 2010, the plans became distorted with accelerated development, and many of the smaller schemes that sprung up deliberately sought to avoid the large infrastructure burdens carried by the legacy era developments.”
“I am sure investigations with developers such as UPDC (Pinnock Beach), Trojan Estate, Aircom (Northern Foreshore), Cityscape (Buenavista), Howard Roarks (Lake View) and Octo5 (Ocean Bay) will reveal how they all spent huge sums providing infrastructure with zero support from the government while still paying punitive taxes.”
Echoing these sentiments, Femi Oyedele, Managing Director of Fame at Oyster & Co. Nigeria, emphasized the lack of coordination among estate layout plans. He advocated for a comprehensive approach to urban planning, suggesting the demolition of estates along key arterial roads to facilitate planned development.
“To do Lekki better, those estates which have been approved on the west and east arterial roads, which go down to Awoyaya on the east side and to Akodo on the west side of Lekki-Epe Expressway, must be demolished to make way for the planned roads.”
Oyedele proposed a model akin to the urban restoration efforts in Abuja, spearheaded by Nasir El’Rufai, to address the burgeoning population and infrastructural challenges in Lekki. Drawing parallels with cities like Glasgow, he stressed the need for adequate road infrastructure to support the growing population of over 3 million in the Lekki Peninsula and Victoria Island area.
“The kind of restoration done to Abuja by Nasir El’Rufai must be done in Lekki. Lekki Peninsular and Victoria Island have a population of over 3 million people. Glasgow has a population of less than 2 million people with twice the roads of Lekki Peninsula,” he emphasized.