The Lagos State Government has sealed several properties and arrested five individuals in Lekki following an enforcement exercise against illegal dredging and land reclamation along the Lagos Lagoon.
The operation, led by the Commissioner for Waterfront Infrastructure Development, Dayo Alebiosu, was carried out in collaboration with the Ministries of Physical Planning and Urban Development, Environment and Water Resources, as well as the Lands Bureau.
During the exercise, a property on Admiralty Way, Lekki Phase 1, was sealed after officials discovered unauthorised reclamation works and an illegal extension of its perimeter fence. Alebiosu described the actions of the property owner as brazen, noting that the building had been sealed on several occasions since last year but construction and social activities continued in defiance of government orders.
“This is an act of legendary audacity,” Alebiosu said, warning that offenders will be prosecuted and risk forfeiting the illegally reclaimed land. He added that sand recovered from such operations would be diverted for productive uses.
Commissioner for Physical Planning, Dr Olumide Oluyinka, revealed that the ministry had earlier approved a layout of 1,200 square metres for the property, but the site had since been unlawfully expanded to about 8,000 square metres. He said the site has once again been sealed, stressing that authorities would revoke all approvals and prevent activities that put lives at risk.
The Permanent Secretary, Office of Drainage Services, Mahmood Adegbite, also confirmed that illegal reclamation works had blocked three channels leading into the lagoon, while the Permanent Secretary for Environmental Services, Mobolaji Gaji, disclosed that a stop-work order had previously been issued to the operators, who had obstructed a primary drainage route.
The enforcement team further sealed multiple illegal dredging and reclamation sites at Lekki Foreshore, where five suspects were apprehended while others fled. Alebiosu expressed concern about large-scale illegal sand mining, some stretching up to seven kilometres into the lagoon, being conducted without the mandatory Environmental Impact Assessments or approvals. He also noted the proliferation of shanties along the waterfronts, which he said often serve as criminal hideouts.
The commissioner stressed that the crackdown is a continuation of commitments made at the recently concluded Lagos Waterfront Summit, where Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu pledged stronger enforcement to safeguard lives, property, and the environment under the state’s T.H.E.M.E.S+ development agenda.
Other officials who joined the exercise included the Executive Secretary of the Lands Bureau, Lolade Ajetumobi, and the General Manager of the Lagos State Environmental Sanitation Corps, Retired Maj. Olaniyi Cole. The team also inspected activities at the Ilubirin housing project.
Earlier this month, the Ministry of the Environment ordered the suspension of all reclamation projects across Lagos, citing widespread violations of environmental regulations, including works on wetlands, floodplains, and lagoons without proper Environmental Impact Assessments and drainage clearances.
