15November2016Lagos,Nigeria

agbajowo la f in soya

pi l i pi l i toloton mi je po godo tolonayo

unity is our strength

THENIGERIANSLUM/INFORMALSETTLEMENTFEDERATION

CONDEMNSFORCEDEVICTIONOFOVER30,000FROMOTODOGBAME&THOUSANDSMOREFROMEBUTE-IKATE,LAGOSON9-11NOVEMBER2016

CALLSFORIMMEDIATEPROVISIONOFRELIEFMATERIALS&EMERGENCYSHELTER;and

DEMANDSIMMEDIATEMORATORIUMONDEMOLITIONSINLAGOS&INVESTIGATIONINTOROLEOFPOLICE&PRIVATEINTERESTSINFORCEDEVICTIONS

Today, the Nigerian Slum/Informal Settlement Federation stands in solidarity with ourmembersinOtodoGbamecommunity,anancestralfishingvillagelocatedoffMTNProjectFameRoadinLekkiPhaseI,aswellastheirneighborsinEbute-Ikatecommunity.Wecondemntheforcedevictionsofover30,000hard-working, law-abidingcitizensfromOtodo Gbame and thousands more from Ebute-Ikate on 9-11 November 2016. We inparticularcondemntheuseoffire,demolitioninthemiddleofthenight,andthetragiclossoflifeofpersonswhodrownedwhenchasedbypoliceintotheLagosLagoon.Wealsocondemnthetotal impunity,notingthattheforcedevictionofOtodoGbamewascarried out in blatant disregard of a subsisting order of the Lagos State High CourtrestrainingthePoliceandtheLagosStateGovernmentfromcarryingoutanydemolitionorevictionofOtodoGbameorotherwaterfrontcommunitiesacrossLagosState.The forced eviction of Otodo Gbame community commenced on the morning of 9November 2016 when police began assisting a group of thugs led by a member of theElegushi Chieftaincy family to set fire to houses, businesses, and community facilities.When residents tried toquench the fires, thepolice chased themawaywith teargas andbullets,forcingresidentstorushintotheLagosLagoon.Severalpersonsdrowned.Justaftermidnight, in theweehoursof10November2016, thepolicecamebackwithabulldozer that began to demolish the remainder of the community in the dead of night,whenresidentsandthenewlyhomelessweresleeping. Theyagainsetpropertiesablaze.Despitecalls tohigher levelsof thepolice, includingtheComplaintsResponseUnit intheInspectorGeneralofPolice’soffice,therewasnorespitetoprotectlivesandproperties.Inapublicstatementon9November2016,theLagosStatePoliceCommandpointedtotheinvolvementoftheLagosStateMinistryofPhysicalPlanningandUrbanDevelopmentintheeviction.AnofficialoftheLagosBuildingControlAgencyalsoadmittedinvolvement.

In the morning of 11 November 2016, police and a demolition squad on mufti camesuddenly to Ebute Ikate, an informal settlement neighboring Otodo Gbame, and toldresidents to start packing their loads. The demolition began shortly thereafter with abulldozer destroyinghomes and shops andpolice settingproperties on fire.Mediaweredeniedaccesstothecommunity,whilethousandswereevictedinamatterofhours.Since11November2016,evicteesarefacingagravehumanitariandisasterwithoutshelter,accesstocleanwater,food,orotherbasicneeds.Eachday,policereturntoOtodoGbameto harass evicteeswith arrest and settingmore properties ablaze. On the evening of 13November, for instance, police came to set fire to the approximately 100 traditionalbamboohousesthatremainedabovetheLagoon.Oneofourmemberswashandcuffedandarrestedwhenhetriedtopresentthepolicewithacopyofthecourtinjunction.Whilewe,theurbanpoor,standuptothisgraveandinhumaneinjustice,wearepleasedtobejoinedbysomanyothersincivilsocietyandbeyondwhohavecondemnedtheseacts.Wenotethedeafeningsilence,however,ofourelectedleaders–thePresident, theLagosStateGovernor,themembersoftheNationalAssemblyandLagosStateHouseofAssembly,among others – and other voices that should represent the international community incondemningtheseatrocities,includingUNHabitat,theWorldBank,andforeignEmbassies.WefirmlybelievethatLagosStateandNigeriaasawholeshould,bytheyear2016,haveleftsuchatrocitiesbeyondandbemovingtowardmodern,inclusive,participatoryandpro-poor urban development. We are deeply saddened to discover, once again, that ourgovernmentandsecurityforcesarestillemployingthebrutalpracticesofthemilitaryera.Wethereforecalluponourelectedleadersandtheinternationalcommunitytodemand:

1. UniversalcondemnationoftheforcedevictionsinOtodoGbameandEbuteIkate;2. Immediate provision of reliefmaterials and emergency shelter for evictees, along

with longer-term plans for rebuilding or suitable resettlement of evictees, alongwithcompensationforalllosses,andapublicapologyfromallresponsible;

3. AnimmediatemoratoriumondemolitionsinLagosStateandengagementwithwe,theurbanpoor,aroundalternativestoevictions;

4. ApublicinquiryintotheroleofpoliceandprivateinterestsinLagosdemolitions.TheNigerian Slum/Informal SettlementFederation is amovementof theurbanpoor forourdignityanddevelopment,madeupofcommunitysavingsgroupsinover70slumsandinformalsettlementshereinLagos–andgrowingalsoinotherNigeriancities.Inadditiontocommunity-ledeconomicempowermentthroughoursavingsgroups,weworkwithourmembercommunitiestoundertakecitywideslumprofiling,mapping,andenumeration.Weare supported by Justice & Empowerment Initiatives – Nigeria and affiliated withShack/SlumDwellersInternational(SDI),aglobalnetworkofslumdwellers’federations.SIGNED:NIGERIANSLUM/INFORMALSETTLEMENTFEDERATION,LAGOSCHAPTERFormoreinformation,pleasecontact:AkinrolabuSamuel–08039214391,07086391373;BimboOshobe–08170206386,08036088915;orSaniMohammed–07069508411,08123143760