Ohanaeze Begs Tinubu To Tell Sanwolu Not To Destroy Alaba Market

Ohanaeze Ndigbo, an Igbo socio-cultural organization, has pleaded with President Bola Tinubu to urge the Lagos State Government to temper justice with mercy when demolition various structures inside the well-known Alaba International Market.

On Friday, June 16, the Sanwo-Olu government in Lagos started the process of tearing down structures housing several shops inside the market located in the Ojo Local Government Area.

The enforcement teams from the Lagos State Task Force and the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA) are working together to carry out the exercise.

According to the state government, 17 buildings would be affected.

During a tour of the area on Friday, June 17, the government issued final warnings and vacation notices to occupants of the structures slated for demolition, claiming that the demolition is required to prevent disaster.

In a statement, Ohanaeze Secretary-General Okechukwu Isiguzoro urged Igbos in Lagos State to “stop playing bad politics,” encouraging the government to show mercy to Igbos who did not vote for the APC in the recent presidential elections.

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Read the statement below.

“We have been informed that the demolition of some parts of Alaba International Market has begun; most of those who called us said they were given only three hours.

“Most of them complained that they are being witch-hunted due to the 2023 general elections; they complained that they are systematically trying to make them leave Lagos by destroying their properties.

“We want to beg Mr President to call Sanwo-Olu that the best thing to do at this point is to temper justice with mercy. We would not accept that this is a political witch-hunt or issue threats on the crisis that has befallen Igbos in Lagos.

“At this moment in time, Igbos should stop politics and concentrate on what they are looking for in Lagos.

“Ohanaeze has already told Igbos to relocate the headquarters of their businesses back home to have a fallback position when politics are targeted against them.

“Our Republicanism should end in the Southeast; they should not take it to Lagos. Some people threatened the Igbos to leave Lagos, but we won’t leave any part of Nigeria for anybody because we have contributed to the development and building of economies with every state and local government in Nigeria.

“Igbos are Nigerians, so Ohanaeze is saying that the demolition of Alaba International Market is a wake-up call for Ndigbos to come and invest in Enyimba economic city.

“Ndigbos should stay in Lagos, but they should stop playing bad politics because it’s affecting their businesses.

“We supported Sanwo-Olu during the elections, even when Tinubu lost Lagos, so we urge him to halt further demolition of Alaba and other Igbo-populated markets as this would make Igbos to continue supporting Asiwaju’s government and make him to succeed.”