•Rebecca Omolayo
A 63-year-old resident of the Precious Seed community in Oworonshoki, Lagos, has appealed to the state government and the public for urgent assistance after the demolition of her home left her and her family without shelter.
The widow, Rebecca Omolayo, spoke on Channels Television today, explaining that she has been unable to secure any form of accommodation for herself, her children, and her grandchildren since the demolition exercise.
“There is nothing we can do. They should please have mercy on us,” she pleaded. “We are begging good people that if they have any house that is free to help us, we are ready, because some of us do not have any hope.”
For months, several parts of Oworonshoki, including Ajileru, Osasa Extension, and Toluwalase Street, have been affected by demolition exercises carried out by the Lagos State Government over claims of illegal structures, environmental concerns, and building safety violations.
The operation has displaced many families in the area.
Residents have, however, repeatedly insisted that many of the demolished houses were neither illegal nor shanties. Their complaints prompted the Lagos State High Court to issue a restraining order on October 23, 2025, stopping further demolitions.
Despite the order, the Precious Seed community was pulled down on November 27 allegedly without prior notice, leaving scores of residents homeless.
Omolayo also alleged that before the demolition, some individuals received payments ranging from ₦200,000 to ₦300,000, which she said were given only to select indigenes of Oworonshoki.
“Even most of the people given money don’t have houses in Oworonshoki. They are just indigenes and they went to the Oba’s house to collect it,” she claimed.
Several residents have accused the Oba of Oworonshoki, Babatunde Saliu, of backing the demolition in order to reclaim waterfront land for private development.
The monarch has denied the allegation, insisting that he, too, lost property in the exercise, though he has been involved in distributing funds to some displaced persons.
Omolayo said life has become extremely unstable for her family since their home was destroyed.
“We go everywhere together because I can’t leave my children and grandchildren alone,” she said.
“We stayed inside a water tank at one point, but they came there too and destroyed it. Now we just stay around; some people sleep on the street. Anywhere we see, we sleep.”
