The Lagos State Government on Tuesday said it would take legal action against recalcitrant developers who consistently break government seals and refuse to obey Physical Planning laws.
The General Manager, of Lagos State Physical Planning Permit Authority (LASPPPA), Mr. Kehinde Osinaike, said this during an enforcement exercise of the authority on Kusenla Way, Ikate Elegushi, Eti-Osa Local Government of the state.
Osinaike, who led the enforcement team, decried disregard for the state’s physical planning laws, especially among building developers.
He said that breaking the government seal was a criminal offense that attracted sanctions, but the authorities had been doing their best to educate Lagos residents and developers on the benefits of voluntary compliance.
The general manager said erring developers and property owners who broke seals of earlier notices served on them were being issued follow-up notices.
He said that government would adopt legal options after exhausting all peaceful options.
Osinaike said several residents were responding to the campaign for voluntary compliance but some developers still refused to obey the laws.
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He appealed for total compliance to achieve a win-win situation for both residents and the government toward achieving an organized safe and livable city.
“We are trying to be as much as possible civil with these developers who are bent on circumventing the law or compromising.
“We will continue this campaign for voluntary compliance until we achieve zero tolerance in the state,” he said.
The general manager said over 20 properties were sealed for various infractions including illegal development, building without planning permits, and constructing without stage certification.
He said that the elite in the high-brow axis who should know better were also flouting the law.
Commenting on a jetty that was sealed on Ozumba Mbadiwe Way on the Lekki axis, Osinaike said the developer was building without planning permission.
“The law would have to take its course, one of the things we have to do now is we are going to instruct our legal person to proceed on arresting these unrepentant developers and bring them to justice,” he said.
