Oby Ezekwesili, the former Minister of Education, has urged Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State to address the recent demolition carried out at Alaba Market.
She has specifically requested that the governor promptly disclose information about the specific buildings demolished by his administration at Alaba International Market in Lagos State.
In a post on her verified Twitter account on Tuesday, Ezekwesili emphasized that providing these details would serve as evidence that the governor’s actions were not driven by a vindictive political agenda against the Igbo community in Alaba Market.
It should be noted that the Lagos State government recently ordered the demolition of 17 shops in the market, situated in the Ojo Local Government Area (LGA), leading to significant controversy.
Speculation has arisen that Governor Sanwo-Olu authorized the demolition as a reprisal against the Igbo traders in Alaba Market, who allegedly voted against him in the gubernatorial election held on March 18.
Ezekwesili, who comes from an Igbo-speaking community in Anambra State, subsequently utilized social media to call on Governor Sanwo-Olu to provide comprehensive information regarding the demolition exercise.
“The Governor Sanwo-Olu-led @followlasg on Friday started the process of removing what it described as distressed buildings in the Alaba International Market in the Ojo Local Government Area,” Ezekwesili tweeted
“I have a policy advice for @jidesanwoolu that would be helpful for all sides and the public.
“Mr Governor, please immediately publish details of each destroyed building and the dateline of due process rules that were exhausted by your government before it was ‘removed.’
“It will be wise for the governor to take this counsel on transparency and full disclosure since it would provide evidence to the public that this is not a vengeful political attack against the predominant Igbo community in Alaba Market,” she said.
She also advised the Lagos state government and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu (BAT) to stop “brewing toxic atmosphere” against others which she alleged both men had been doing even before the 2023 general elections took place.
“Let me also use this opportunity to really again advise the @followslasg and its cheerleaders including @officialABAT to be careful in persisting to brew a terribly toxic atmosphere against fellow (Nigerian) citizens since before, during, and after the 2023 elections,” she said.
“Governance by maliciousness does no one any good. A word is sufficient for only the wise,” the former Minister of solid minerals stressed.
Meanwhile, the Lagos State Government had explained that the buildings in the market were “physically distressed” and that the “lives of business men and women within the market would be put at risk” in the event of imminent collapse.
A statement issued by Gbolahan Oki, the General Manager (GM) of the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA), provided an explanation regarding the demolition. Oki stated that the decision to demolish the buildings was driven by the fact that they were distressed and posed a risk not only to themselves but also to the neighboring structures.
