Justice Adeniyi Onigbanjo of the Lagos State High Court has ruled in favour of residents of Otodo-Gbame, ordering the Lagos State government to enter into consultations with the forcefully evicted residents to devise a resettlement plan.
Justice Onigbanjo made the ruling on Wednesday, condemning the state government for forcefully evicting the residents without prior discussion on a resettlement strategy.
Describing the eviction as unconstitutional, the judge ruled that evictions without adequate notice and resettlement are unconstitutional and violate Section 34 of the 1999 constitution as amended.
Speaking further, Justice Onigbanjo added that evictions without consultation or a resettlement plan in place wholly violate the rights of the community residents.
Residents of the coastal Otodo Gbame community were evicted by the Lagos State government in order to sell the land to real estate developers.
Over 30,000 people were displaced from the community, while numerous homes, schools and churches were demolished.
During the demolition and forceful eviction from the waterfront community, some residents were killed while many others went missing.
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