Benjamin Kalu, deputy speaker of the house of representatives, has asked President Bola Tinubu to intervene in the demolition of properties owned by Igbos in Lagos state.
There have been demolition of plazas at the trade fair complex in Ojo LGA of Lagos.
The exercise was carried out by officials of the Lagos ministry of physical planning, Lagos State Building Control Agency, Lagos State Urban Renewal Agency, and the Lagos State Physical Planning Permit Authority.
On Tuesday, Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in 2023, who visited the Auto Spare Parts and Machinery Dealers Association (ASPAMDA) section of the market with a handful of federal lawmakers, including Enyinnaya Abaribe (Abia south senator) and Victor Umeh (Anambra central senator), said the plazas were pulled down despite valid approvals.
However, Olumide Oluyinka, Lagos state commissioner for physical planning and urban development, countered Obi, saying the demolition was not targeted at Igbo traders.
He said the affected buildings had no valid approvals and that they were pulled down over safety concerns.
Speaking on Friday during the commissioning of projects in Aba, Abia state, Kalu urged Tinubu to prevail on the Lagos state government to stop the demolition.
“Mr president, I also want to say that the destruction and demolition of the houses and offices of our brothers in Lagos makes our hearts bleed,” Kalu said.
“Mr president, for some of them who have not gotten the right documents, my plea to you is to appeal to the governor of Lagos state to keep accommodating our brothers and allow them to rectify their documents instead of destruction.
“Let them come into the room, find a way, and regularise some of these documents. It bleed our hearts that houses are being destroyed in these hard times.
“But I know that Mr president, who cares for the Igbo, who made the Igbo one of the first commissioners of finance in his administration, will listen to the yearning of Igbo.”
Kalu said Tinubu should be commended for making more funds available to states through reforms.
“I want us to be very vocal in praising the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria on how he has made resources available to the states when he removed the oil subsidy,” he said.
“He did not keep that money in Abuja, he sent it to the states. It is my challenge to the commissioner for information and all the media houses in Abia state to give credit to whom credit is due.”
The deputy speaker appealed for the establishment of a seaport in the south-east, saying it would boost trade and economic activities in the area.
