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Tag: demolition

  • Residents petition Ambode over demolition

    Residents petition Ambode over demolition

    Residents of Magodo Estate under the aegis of Magodo Residents’ Association (MRA) are worried over plot to demolish a section of the estate.

    The residents are anxious over deployment of bulldozers and caterpillars at the area by the Lagos State Government.

    Their concern is that lives and properties will be exposed to danger, if the conservation, which shields the estate’s extension, is demolished.

    Southwest Report gathered that the residents were served with letter before the move to demolish the conservatory, but the residents alleged that the demolition was not authorised by Governor Akinwunmi Ambode or any designated authority.

    The letter, a copy of which was served to the MRA, dated October 18, with the title: “Removal of Endangering Bushes, Shanties and Creation of Access Road/ Channelisation of Canal between Magodo Brooks and Omole Phase 1” without any designated office.

    The residents, however, urged Governor Ambode to stop the planned demolition because “there are environmental implications to the host community if demolished.”

    According to the chairman of the association, Kunle Eludire, who debunked the subterfuge that the site is a shanty and a dangerous bush further explained that the conservation adds ecological value to the estate in particular and the state in general.

    He said: “The conservation covers the back of the estate. For security reasons, the reserve should not be removed because once it is removed; the entire estate, the residents and our properties will be exposed. We are not threatened by shanties and other things those that brought the letter claimed.”

    He, however, called on Governor Ambode to wade into the matter before the estate is unnecessarily exposed to security threats.

    “They earlier came with mobile policemen but we resisted them and now they came back with a letter which they hurriedly wrote. We can deduce that the letter is not from the governor or any of the commissioners or the Ministry of Environment and Lands,” he added.

    Jade Niboro, First Vice-Chairman said: “By the first meter they moved, we saw three big pythons. We have monkeys and crocodiles here. As we try to prevent flooding, here they want to create a larger problem.

    “We notice from the letter they brought that there is foul play because the letter was not from the governor or the ministry that supervises the environment; neither was it signed by any of the commissioners. We have written a petition to the governor and copied the various ministries and the Lagos State House of Assembly.”

    Bajo Osunubi, second Vice-Chairman of the association said: “The first time the people from Lagos State Land Bureau came, they said they wanted to access 12 plots of land here. We told them that if they should open this way, people will have easy access to the estate. After that they left. They came back the second time and we told them they can’t create an access road here. We know that government can’t destroy the estate. I know the governor has the power but what they are doing here is very wrong.

    “Secondly, they wrote us a letter that the governor gave them a right to link Brooks Estate to Omole Phase 1 and Magodo Phase 2 which is not possible. The moment you create an access road here, there will be general security threat.

    “The site only leads to Olowo-Ira and Agility Mile 12 which are very close to the estate. We believe the state government will always work with the Master Plan structured for development. The decision to demolish part of the estate was the handiwork of some dubious elements in government who are collaborating with land grabbers,” he added.

    Mrs Kemi Omotoso, the environmental secretary explained that there is a canal in the conservatory through which all waste water from the estate and its environs are channelled to. She said: “The canal serves Shangisha, Omole Phase 2 and Magodo Estate. So, if they demolish it, the neighbourhood will be affected.”

  • Demolition backlash

    Demolition backlash

    Pulling down structures has been going on apace, but not without victims crying foul. GBENGA OMOKHUNU reports
    img_20160907_142541-ok-copyBack in January everyone thought the new minister was joking when he said he would go the el-Rufai way. Kaduna State Governor Malam Nasir el-Rufai, in his days as minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) was the Demolition Man because he went about pulling down structures in a way that some thought was quite brazen. He was feared and fought for his troubles.

    Now, one of his successors, Malam Muhammad Bello is proving that he is no joker and that he can bite as much as he can bark, much like the good old Demolition Man. Several property owners can attest to that, to their horror.

    Bulldozers from the Abuja Metropolitan Management Council (AMMC) have been at work, while their owners have been vehement in condemning the operation.

    A few weeks ago, investigations revealed that the AMMC intensified the continuous demolition of what it termed illegal structures within the city centre on the order of the FCT minister.

    Bello has always made it known that he would stop at nothing to restore the Abuja master plan, and that at the end of the planned demolition, there would be no slum in the FCT.

    It would be recalled that Bello, during one of his press briefings early this year, said, “Buildings on sewer lines, green areas and areas of public interest that are not authorised will be removed. Beneficiaries of undeveloped lands in Phase 1 and Phase 2 stand the risk of forfeiting them. To run this city, we must go back to the law.”

    Several houses and shops have been demolished with many people going through pains and hardship on how to get themselves together and face the challenges of life.

    Affected people said they did not what next to do or where to go after their shops were pulled down.

    Many of them complained that government was carrying out the demolition exercise on short notice.

    Affected areas include Salsa Spot close to H-Medix supermarket, located at Ademola Adetokunbo Crescent, Wuse 2 Abuja, Shops and malls located around Banex plaza area.

    A village located at Utako area was also affected in the ongoing exercise.

    One of the affected victims of the demolition exercise a worker with a Suya Spot, Malam Sani Umaru told Abuja Review that AMMC did not give them adequate notice before the demolition.

    He said, “They only gave us 24 hours’ notice and before the 24 hours the demolition was carried out; this is inhuman treatment meted on us by the authority of the FCT. This business has existed here for the past 15 years there was no time we were ever harassed by the authority or any government official.  This action has denied about 13 persons means of livelihood and other beneficiaries of this business.

    “We are 13 persons working here earning at least N1,700 daily, if you calculate that you know what you can get. Right now I am hungry because my means of earning income has been stopped by the same government that supposed to create job for the people.

    Another shop owner who doesn’t want his name in print described the exercise as one lacking in objectivity as some buildings owned by highly influential individuals were not affected in the demolition exercise.

    “They marked there and here, they pulled down mine they didn’t pull down that one. That is the world, a world of wickedness, the notice they gave was only 24 hours.

    When asked whether he got approval from necessary authorities before the structure was erected, the victim insisted that his building was not illegal, claiming that he had been operating there for more than 10 years.

    He said, “It is not illegal, this structure has been here since the first tenure of Obasanjo, what are we talking about?”

    Other property owners have been lamenting the sudden resumption of demolition exercise, accusing the FCTA of insensitivity and violation of due process.

    Another affected lady Chioma Chukwu said: “Yesterday, I got a call about the demolition at about 4pm and this morning, they are already demolishing at other parts of the town, Banex to be precise, so we are trying to pack our things. We have been here for the past five-years, and nobody has said we are doing anything wrong.”

    The demolition, according to other affected persons that spoke to Abuja Review in recent times, become worrisome in view of the fact that the country is facing a serious economic meltdown occasioned by the economic recession with the government urging the youths to look for alternative job opportunities in order to be gainfully employed.

    All efforts to speak with a Deputy Director at AMMC, Mukhtar Galadima, to react to the allegation that government gave them short notice were futile.

    For government, it is a win-win process, but for the masses, it is pain and agony.

     

  • Police issue report on demolition of cleric’s building

    The police have issued a report on a petition by the General Overseer of Chosen of the Lord Ministries Inc, Prophet Oni Martins, who alleged a threat to his life, malicious damage and demolition of his house by a “criminal gang”.

    A copy of the report, signed by the Officer-in-Charge, Legal, Zone Two Police Command, Onikan, has been forwarded to the Lagos State Director of Public Prosecution (DPP).

    In a July 11 reminder to the Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG), Oni prayed that those who demolished his building and damaged his property worth N1.2billion in 2009 using a questionable court judgment be charged.

    “I strongly appeal to the AIG Zone 2 to use your discretion and good offices to charge this matter to court without further delay, as the people allegedly involved are still threatening my life,” he wrote.

    According to the police report, there is a prima facie evidence to file charges against those accused of masterminding the demolition, including a law firm.

    The police said they and others at large should be charged with “offences of conspiracy, malicious damage, forgery, stealing, unlawful interference with property, forcible entry, forcible possession and conduct likely to cause breach of the peace punishable under section 409, 337, 393, 285, 338, 53, 53 and 166 (d) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.”

    The reports adds: “Owing to the complexity of the parties’ claims, the involvement or alleged involvement of public officers (bailiffs and police officers) and the grey area yet to be investigated, this office recommends that the casefile be carefully and clearly duplicated and forwarded to the DPP for further vetting and issuance of legal advice in line with Section 74 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law of Law 2011 and in the interest of justice.”

    In an earlier a petition to the police through his lawyer Gboyega Okenla, Martins said those who illegally demolished his property were still walking about free six years after.

    The cleric, who is Director-General of the Police Assistance Committee/Association of Tradesmen/Women and Artisans of Nigeria, said he was “aggrieved and highly discouraged” that those who committed the crime have been “shielded” from prosecution.

    Martins said the “criminal gang” had been writing petitions to the police to undermine the investigation and question the investigators’ integrity.

    “Their method of subverting the cause of justice has become apparent from the inability of the police to take the matter to court since 2009,” he said.

    The cleric said the a former commissioner of police in charge of investigations at the Zone 2 Police Command, after an investigation, established a case of forgery, robbery and criminal damage against some individuals, yet no one has been charged.

    “Since a prima facie case has been established against this set of criminals, including the lawyers, there should not be further delay in commencing prosecution in this matter.

    “We also wish to urge you in earnest to effectively discharge your duty as expected to show that there is still justice in this country and to make the criminals know that their game is over,” Martins wrote.

    In another petition to the Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Zone 2, Martins said those who demolished the building have allegedly been jeopardising investigation and intimidating the police through the questionable court judgment.

    According to him, he was not a party to the suit that led to the “verdict”, adding that he has all the title documents of the property.

    Martins said the two-storey building, on Plot 15, Apapa-Oshodi Expressway, Ijeshatedo, was demolished by armed thugs known as “land warriors” numbering about 200, accompanied by alleged impersonators who claimed to be bailiffs, flaunting a purported court judgment.

    He said the hoodlums brought down the building housing warehouses, shops and a church hall, and carted away goods, which, according to him, is “conservatively valued at N1.2billion.”

    Martins said he developed mild stroke from the shock he felt after the demolition and was hospitalised for over four years. He said he enquired from the High Court’s bailiff section and was informed that none was sent to supervise his building’s demolition.

  • Landlords, developer trade words over demolition of houses

    Landlords, developer trade words over demolition of houses

    Some landlords in Ilamoshe Estate in Ejigbo, Lagos, have accused a developer of illegally demolishing their houses.

    The developer is allegedly relying on a court judgment to carry out the demolition, but the landlords are claiming their buildings do not fall within the area covered by the verdict.

    The landlords, Idowu Malomo, Adewale Adenuga, Mrs Funmi Sanni, Andrew Itimi, Captain Joseph Awodeha, Raymond Uzor and Hammed Ishola Makanju said their houses were not part of the land covered by the judgement.

    In a petition to Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, Inspector-General of Police and Lagos State Chief Judge, their lawyer, Mr Gbenga Ojo accused the developer of vandalising his clients’ houses in a bid to “forcibly eject them”.

    The January 22 petition reads: “We are writing because as the governor of Lagos State, you are the Chief Security Officer of the state and we have absolute confidence that you will protect the lives and property of our clients from land grabbers/ajagungbales using authority of the police and the judiciary to perpetrate acts of violence, brigandage and gangsterism without any regard for the rule of law.

    “The landlords have been in peaceful and undisturbed possession of their property for between 15 and 25 years.”

    The petitioners alleged that their buildings were destroyed despite not being under the judgment relied upon by the developer.

    They said: “Some group of people led by Alhaji Hakeem Osuolale, first pasted public notice on the front doors of our clients’ properties to warn them about series of court judgments granted in favour of Abiodun Omodele Ojo and Mrs Jokotade Bakare. “Our clients met him and informed him that their various parcel of land are outside the land covered by the judgment but he refused to listen.

    “Unfortunately, what followed was unbelievable and unimaginable. He brought some policemen and over 500 hoodlums to pull down part of the buildings and fences of our clients in broad daylight. After all these, apparently fearing loss of lives, the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), requested all the parties to go to the office of the Surveyor-General of Lagos State to determine the extent of boundary covered by the judgment and this was done.”

    They said they were still being harassed despite the Surveyor-General’s report that their houses were not captured under the judgment.

    “This”, they said, “is an act of impunity, which we know and believe that your government, which is a government of change will not tolerate from anybody or authority in the state. We, therefore, appeal to you as a matter of urgency to protect our clients, members of their families and their properties from these vandals threatening the peace and security of the state. The report of the Surveyor-General clearly showed that the various parcels of land that belong to our clients are not within the land covered by the judgment.”

    Contacted, Osuolale advised the landlords to go to court if they are dissatisfied with the judgment.

    “If they (landlords) have any issue with the judgment they should approach the court instead of making their case on the pages of newspaper,” he said.

    Speaking with The Nation, Ojo said there were two orders restraining Osuolale and others from trespassing on his clients’ properties.

    He said: “On February 23, Justice L. A. F. Oluyemi of Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja gave an interim order restraining them and the police from going to our clients’ land while Justice Ganiyu Safari, also of Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja on Wednesday February 24 equally granted an order restraining the developer from going to our clients’ landed property.”

    In a communiqué issued at the end of a meeting, the Joint Ilamoshe Community Development Association, to which the landlords belong, said: “The meeting observed that the said judgment did not affect all the land in Ilamoshe, by virtue of the areas verged red in the judgment-creditor’s survey plan. Such areas not included in the said judgment include all the areas in the streets not mentioned at all in the judgment which do not fall within the area verged red in the judgment-creditor’s survey plan No: LA/1425/001/2011 dated 22nd August, 2011. It also includes streets not mentioned at all in the said judgement, which includes, but not limited to the following: Alimi Bada Street; Omoyele Street; Olokobi Lane; Adeyemi Odumade Street; Hammed Makanjuola Avenue; Peace Estate comprising of Labake Adepoju Street; Dim Alor Street; Alhaji Ademola Saka Street and Alhaji Wasiu Sholola Streets.

    “It is only the Deputy Sheriff of the High Court of Lagos State that has the right to levy execution of judgment of the said court in company of police officers. Unfortunately, the judgment-creditor has resorted to self-help in the execution of the said judgment.”

  • Market women protest demolition of their stalls

    Market women protest demolition of their stalls

    FEMALE traders at the demolished Ago Ishaga Market in Mushin, Lagos yesterday urged the government to bar National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) from taking over their shops after the rebuilding of the market.

    The women, who stormed The Nation corporate headquarters in Matori, complained about what they called the “excesses” of NURTW chairman  Suleiman Adio.

    The traders, led by  Kazeem Yusuf, their spokesman,  said Adio has vowed to stop them from returning to their shops.

    Yusuf said: “The state government about three weeks ago carried out some rehabilitation works in the market especially at the canal side leading to Isolo Road and in the process some stalls were demolished. After the reconstruction, the market women were asked to rebuild the market themselves. But to the surprise of the market women, the NURTW in Mushin denied them access to the market in a bid to stop them from reconstructing their stalls.”

    He said Mushin Local Government Executive Secretary Jide  Bello, had been briefed on the matter, adding that nothing meaningful has come out of the talk.

    He continued: “Alhaji Sulaimon Adio claimed that he was not informed about the reconstruction of the shops by the market women and despite the intervention of the Executive Secretary of Mushin Local Government, Adio has refused to grant the women access to their shops.

    “The Chairman of NURTW in Lagos, Tajudeen Agbede, has been informed too and he is trying to resolve the matter amicably. Attempts by all the parties have not yielded the desired results. That is why we are appealing to the state government to prevail on Adio and his men to give peace a chance.”

    A market leader, Alhaja Kafayat Ajose, said many of the women were widows.

    “All we want is for Lagos State Government to help call Adio to order and restore our portion of land  to us,” she said.

  • Council washes hand of Mosafejo’s demolition

    Council washes hand of Mosafejo’s demolition

    Onigbongbo Local Council Development Area (LCDA) yesterday washed its hand of the demolition of Mosafejo Community behind the Oshodi rail line.

    A statement by its Information Unit Head, Fashola Olaniyi described as untrue reports that it demolished the community.

    Olaniyi said: “For the records, Onigbongbo Local Council Development Area did not demolish Mosafejo Community; we would have also been a victim but for the fact that we were able to present vital ownership documents to the Lagos State Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development.”

  • Benue: 206 illegal structures for demolition

    Benue: 206 illegal structures for demolition

    The Benue State government Monday said it had marked about 206 illegal structures scattered across the state capital, Makurdi for demolition in the next demolition exercise bid to take place this week.

    General Manager of Benue State Urban Development Board, Mr. Richard Agwa disclosed this while fielding questions from journalists in his office in Makurdi.

    Agwa explained that owners of such structures have long been served with notices of demolition, adding that the exercise is a deliberate policy of the Ortom administration to open up development blocked channels as the rains is fast approaching.

    He disclosed that areas where the structures have been marked for demolition include Achusa, Kanshio as well as Logo 1 and 2, adding that the major challenge confronting the board was lack of earth moving equipment, but commended the governor for making a provision for the board in the 2016 budget to address some of the problems.

  • Traders seek govt’s intervention on planned demolition of Aregbesola market

    Traders at the Rauf Aregbesola Market in Iyana-Ipaja, Lagos, have appealed to the government to intervene in their dispute with Alimosho Local Government Area.

    The council on Friday threatened to eject the traders to pave the way for market’s demolition in order to upgrade it.

    NAN reports that the Rauf Aregbesola Market is a bungalow structure market, created in 2004 with 110 shops.

    The traders told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) yesterday that it was the council’s second attempt to eject them from the market.

    According to the traders, in 2012, they were asked to submit their allocation papers for the market’s upgrade.

    They said the upgrade was suspended when their lawyer challenged the council after an advice from the Lagos State Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development.

    According to them, the Ministry of Physical Planning advised that the structures in the market be maintained as any attempt to raise the shops to high rise would affect the structural integrity of the entire market.

    Mr Isaac Ilesanmi, a trader in the market said: “We forwarded the Town Planning report, through our lawyer, to the Governor’s Office and copied the council and the upgrade was suspended.

    “But now, they have come back to take over the shops.”

    The traders queried the rationale of the local government for planning to take over the shops that were sold to them on owner-occupier terms at the first instance.

    “We bought these shops in 2004 at the price range of N300,000 for those located inside and N400, 000 for those facing the road.

    “We pay our yearly permit of N4, 100 as responsible citizens, abide by every rule governing the state and expect due consideration from government.

    “However, it is unfortunate that a government that we chose to represent us and oversee our welfare is working secretly to destroy our source of livelihood,” he said.

    Mrs Ayoola Aromolaran, another trader in the market, said: “We are not against the plan to upgrade the market, but what we are saying is that no trader was consulted about the project.

    “I feel this is wrong, we own the shops because we bought them from the state government in 2004, therefore, we should be engaged in issues that affect the market.

    “The purported committee that has been dealing with the council is not representing us; we did not elect nor nominate them to speak on our behalf.

    “They have no stake in Rauf Aregbesola Market; they do not own any shop nor sell in the market, so, they can never understand our plight or be our representatives in this issue.”

    Mr Moses Njoku, said the desperation with which the council was going about the market upgrade showed ulterior motives than the purported improvement of the market.

    “The council is trying to deceive us. We heard that current tenants will have to pay one million naira, while new tenants will pay two million naira to acquire the shops after the upgrade.

    “This is not fair considering the economic situation of the country and the fact that we are paying again for what we had previously bought.

    “Moreso, politics will be played during allocation of the shops; it will be man know man game.”

    Mr Lateef Abiodun, the Market Master for Alimosho Local Government, told NAN that the planned upgrade of the market was in line with the megacity plan of the State Government.

    Abiodun also serves as the Chairman, Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), Alimosho Branch.

    He said: “There’s going to be an upgrade, but we will not displace them, all the previous tenants will be put back in their rightful places.

    “We have had meetings with the committee members set up by the market on this issue. We do not intend to create untold hardship on them, but rather to protect them.

    “If they are resisting, what happened in Oshodi market may happen there, we are not saying we are the ones to do it.

    “Because, those people (Oshodi) have been on it for quite a long time and the state government just took action, we do not want that to happen here.”

  • Residents seek demolition of building

    Residents seek demolition of building

    •Landlord: it’s in good condition

    Is House 102 on Idewu Street in Ajegunle, Lagos safe for inhabitation?

    Some residents of the street believe that the two-storey building is not conducive to live in.

    Part of the building, it was gathered, collapsed in 2010 and it was marked for demolition by Lagos State Urban and Regional Planning officials.

    According to the residents, after the marking, the landlord, Mr Fatai Martins, removed the third floor of the building and ejected tenants on the ground floor.

    But, Martins denied that the house was marked for demolition.

    He told The Nation that he built the house in 1999 as a three-storey building.

    “In 2010, when a part of the building collapsed, some officials came but I was only told to renovate it and remove the third floor which I did. I removed it and made a solid gutter roof and fixed a pillar to the part that collapsed. They inspected what I did and since then nobody has come to me. I have not had any issue with my tenants. The reason I ejected the tenants on the ground floor was because they always owed me. As I speak, someone has paid for the room,” he said.

    The 70-year-old landlord added: “I used to live on the third floor. The reason I left was because of my leg. I left there even before the government officials came. It’s a family issue. My siblings and I have issues over the property and since then they have been finding means to destroy the building. They once locked me up in a police station.”

    A tenant, Samuel Sam, said it was all a family misunderstanding.

    “When the two-storey building crashed, government officials came and Baba did all what he was asked to do. His family have issues with him because of property,” he said.

    A shop owner, who didn’t give her name, said she has been occupying the place for over five years, adding that the building was not marked.

    Another tenant, simply called Baba Tosin, said he has been living there for over 40 years.

    “I have been a tenant here. Fatai and I grew up together. It is a family problem,” he said.

  • Artistes Village demolition

    Artistes Village demolition

    ‘We have receipts for the spaces,’ – Victims cry out

    Over a week after the demolition of the Artistes Village at the National theatre in Lagos, the dusts are yet to settle, as victims and the authorities trade words. Udenma Chukwuma reports

    When news broke that the National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC), also known as Artistes Village in Iganmu, Lagos, has been destroyed, lots of questions arose. Chief among them were: What could be the problem? Who authorised the demolition? Were there any notices?

    As one approaches the scene of the demolition, the sight that greeted this reporter was one of exasperation on the part of artists who had been affected and their sympathisers. A certain voice said, “Government get power o,” while another remarked that “What can we do? Na anything they like, they do.”

    Sources said the demolition took place on Saturday, January 23. One of the occupants of the place, Pelumi Lawal, said they suddenly saw a large number of policemen in the arts and culture council around 5am. He said it was a strange sight, especially at that time of the day and he and others were frightened. He told this reporter that before they could ask any questions, the structures which serve as studio and workshop for artists were being pulled down by a bulldozer.

    He said other structure that serve as stores went down as well. Majorly affected were some dancers and choreographers, whose rehearsal studio was destroyed.

    Now, the occupants are pointing fingers at Alhaji Kabiru Yussuf, General Manager of the National Theatre, wondering how come buildings of the National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC) were left untouched.

    An attempt to get Yussuf’s version of the story was however not successful, as he was not in the office. It was however gathered that Yussuf was present during the demolition at NCAC.

    A source who works at the National Theatre said the demolished structures were illegal. “We did not demolish the NCAC building. What we demolished were the illegal structures and shanties,” he said.

    But the occupants said the spaces were rented to them by the NACA management before they erected the structures.

    The source said “Immoral activities were taking place in the buildings, insecurity reigned, some people were even rearing pigs in the area and Indian hemp were freely sold and smoked there.

    He said, “NCAC is competing with the National Theatre. They are renting events place, and showing cinema there… they wanted to create a kingdom for themselves but government said no.”

    He also said the place had been turned into a residential area and was fast becoming an eyesore, and that the government’s intervention was to give the place a new face.

    He stressed that no artwork was damaged, but a visit to NCAC showed lots of artworks scattered among ruins.

    Gubadia Monday, an artist, was affected the most. His artworks were scattered on the ground, while the saved pieces stood beside the debris.

    Wearing a sad look, Gubadia said there was no warning from the authority and he was not given any notice or chance to remove his works and belongings. He said before he knew what was happening, “Kabiru (referring to the National theatre GM) don carry caterpillar come here.”

    Presenting invoices, which he said were issued to him by NACA, the sculptor said he has been there for three years and legally too.

    Smart Owie, a visual artist, who was reported to have been shot during the demolition explained that he wasn’t particularly aimed at and that a bullet hit him on the calf when the artists followed the police in protest.

    Although our source at the National Theatre office said no shots were fired, Owie said shots were fired to scare the protesters. “Everybody ran away, but I stood there.” he said; “I felt it would be safer to stand still than run, because I knew they wouldn’t deliberately aim a gun at me.” Luckily for him the bullet passed through the back of his right calf.

    He also said he had paid for the space on which he built his workshop.

    Even as he recuperates, Owie said he is devastated and still in shock at the loss   at his source of his livelihood. “I have three children to pay their school fees and my wife is pregnant!” He said.

    Owie said the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Muhammad, when he visited NCAC, offered to take care of his injury; but as at Monday when this reporter visited the scene, he hadn’t heard anything from the minister’s office.

    Aremo Tope Babayemi, who said he is the Coordinator of NCAC, Artistes Village, alleged that Yussuf is trying to get back at them because they opposed the idea of selling of the National Theatre. He stressed that there was a report in the media that miscreant disrupted activities at the National Theatre, which Yussuf used as a tool to convince the minister to demolish the structures.

    They asserted that the Minster had visited them and pledged to look into their matter.

    Popular Nollywood actor, Yemi Adeyemi, known as Suara, was also affected. His store where he sold soft drinks and provision was destroyed. Suara however said his heart goes to the artists “who have lost priceless artworks. “

    He also said “I paid for the store and sought government consent before building the store.”