Residents of Bello, Kusumi Lane, and Onakoya in Ketu, Lagos State, were thrown into panic on Monday and Tuesday as bulldozers and security forces stormed their neighborhoods, demolishing houses allegedly without warning.
Eyewitnesses told NIGPOST that heavily armed policemen, suspected land grabbers, and fierce-looking thugs carried out the demolition.
Many claim that the Onikosi of Ikosi, Alamu Onikosi, ordered the operation based on a court ruling from an Ikeja court.
Residents Left in Shock
Several landlords and tenants insist they were never informed about the court case or impending demolition.
“I came back from work to find my house in ruins. I had just paid my rent in December 2024 and even renovated my apartment,” a distraught tenant, Mr. Okoro, told NIGPOST.
Another resident, an elderly landlady who has lived in the area for over 40 years, expressed her frustration.
“They just told me to send my tenants out. Even during the military era, things like this didn’t happen,” she lamented.
Court Order Justifies Demolition
A court document obtained by NIGPOST reveals that Hon. Justice M.A. Savage of Court 24, Ikeja, granted the demolition order on November 8, 2023.
The order allowed the claimants, Alamu and Iyabo Onikosi, to remove structures allegedly built illegally on the land.
However, affected residents argue that they were never given the opportunity to contest the ruling before it was enforced.
As of Tuesday afternoon, a bulldozer and at least seven armed policemen remained stationed in the area, with desperate residents hoping for a last-minute intervention.
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