Ebute Meta Tenants drag LASBCA, landlord to Court over alleged rights violation, forced eviction

Some tenants in the Ijero area of Ebute-Meta (West), Lagos State, have dragged their landlord and the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA) to court over alleged unlawful eviction and demolition of their house.

The tenants, numbering nine, filed a suit at the Magistrate Court in Yaba, accusing LASBCA, the estate of the late Razak Apara and four others of violating their fundamental rights to shelter and fair hearing.

According to court filings, the dispute arose after LASBCA served a quit notice on the occupants of a 10-room bungalow located at 24 Ijero Street, Ebute-Meta (West), on October 10, 2025.

The agency claimed the structure was distressed, citing cracked walls, a tattered roof, and dampened walls, and gave residents seven days to vacate.

A follow-up notice dated October 21, 2025, ordered the immediate sealing and demolition of the property.

Counsel to the tenants, Mr. Solomon Fasanmi, argued that the eviction violated the Lagos State Tenancy Law of 2011 and due process for property recovery adding “Even where a building is marked unsafe, there are established procedures the government must follow. Due process cannot be ignored in a democracy”.

Fasanmi described the actions of LASBCA as unconstitutional, oppressive, and a breach of his clients’ right to dignity as enshrined in the 1999 Constitution, urging the court to restrain the agency and the defendants from executing the demolition order.

One of the tenants, Ustadz Muiz Subair, lamented that the eviction notice was served without prior warning.

“They came early in the morning and pasted a seven-day notice, claiming the bungalow was distressed. How can a bungalow be distressed when it’s not even a storey building?” he queried.

Subair appealed to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to intervene, describing the increasing cases of forced evictions as alarming.

Responding to the allegations, Mrs. Adetoye Aderinsola, District Head of LASBCA, Ebute-Meta (East), denied any wrongdoing, insisting the agency acted in the public interest, adding “A bungalow can be distressed if not properly maintained and if there are visible cracks. The building in question showed signs of structural weakness, and our actions followed standard procedure”.