Emmanuel Thomas l Sunday, Sept 28, 2025
LAGOS, Nigeria — In a major enforcement action, the Lagos State Government (LASG) has intensified its battle against illegal dredging and land reclamation along the Lagos Lagoon, sealing multiple sites in the Lekki axis and apprehending five suspects.
The operation, led by a joint task force of the Ministries of Waterfront Infrastructure Development, Physical Planning and Urban Development, and the Environment and Water Resources, targeted unapproved activities that officials say pose a significant threat to the environment and public safety.
The enforcement team, led by the Honourable Commissioner for Waterfront Infrastructure Development, Hon. Dayo Bush Alebiosu, specifically sealed a building at 13A, Admiralty Way, Lekki Phase 1.
The property was cited for engaging in illegal reclamation work in the lagoon and an unauthorized extension of its fence.
”This particular building has been sealed on several occasions by all the relevant ministries dating from last year up till now, yet the owners have continued with construction and social activities without any form of regard,”
Hon. Alebiosu stated, condemning the acts as having a “legendary audacity” and a “blatant disregard for the law.”
The Commissioner for Physical Planning, Dr. Olumide Oluyinka, revealed the shocking scale of the infraction at the site. The owner, who initially presented a layout of 1,200 square meters (sqm), had illegally extended the property to an estimated 8,000 sqm.
”We will revoke all authorities they have on this land,” Dr. Oluyinka warned, adding that the site’s continued use for social activities, despite being incomplete, put lives at risk.
The operation also swept across the Lekki Foreshore, where numerous illegal dredging and reclamation sites were discovered and sealed. Five suspects were apprehended, though others fled the scene upon the arrival of government officials.
Hon. Alebiosu lamented the massive scale of unauthorized sand dealing, noting that operators are working as far as seven kilometers (7km) into the lagoon without the required Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA).
“We have no records of applications to carry out reclamation works along this axis. These operations are illegal,” he stressed.
Officials from the Environment Ministry raised alarm over the environmental consequences, noting that illegal operators have blocked primary water channels that feed the lagoon.
Mr. Mahmood Adegbite, Permanent Secretary, Office of Drainage Services, emphasized that these actions risk affecting the local ecosystem.
The state government is vowing swift and severe action. Hon. Alebiosu disclosed that offenders will be prosecuted, a process that could lead to the forfeiture of the illegally reclaimed land. The recovered sand, he added, would be diverted for “other productive uses.”
The crackdown is an offshoot of the recently concluded Waterfront Summit, where Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu pledged to intensify enforcement against illegal activities to protect lives and property in line with his administration’s T.H.E.M.E.S+ Development Agenda.
The Lagos State Government reiterated its commitment to protecting its waterfronts and lagoons against abuse, warning that offenders will be made to face the full weight of the law.
