The Lagos State House of Assembly has taken a definitive position on the fate of thousands of residents displaced by the demolition of waterfront communities along the Third Mainland Bridge corridor, recommending they be relocated to Agbowa in the Epe Local Government Area of Lagos State.
The recommendation followed the adoption of a report by the Assembly’s Standing Committee on Rules and Business, which investigated the demolition of structures in the Makoko, Oko-Agbon and Sogunro communities.
The lawmakers proposed that affected residents be relocated to a proposed low-cost housing estate to be developed in Agbowa, Epe, where they would be able to continue their fishing activities.
The roots of this crisis stretch back to December 2025. The Lagos State Government began the demolition of what it described as illegal structures around areas adjoining the Third Mainland Bridge, an exercise that displaced many residents of the waterfront settlements.
The demolition sparked protests from affected residents, who subsequently petitioned the Speaker of the House, Mudashiru Obasa, seeking legislative intervention.
Following the petition, the Assembly called for a temporary halt to the demolition exercise while it commenced an inquiry into the matter.
The committee’s final hearing on March 5, 2026 laid bare the deep divisions within the affected communities over what they want from the government.
The Alase of the Egun Community in Makoko, Francis Agoyon, advocated permanent relocation of affected residents rather than financial compensation.
The Baale of Makoko supported the relocation position but urged the government to clearly identify where displaced people would be resettled and to define the precise boundaries of the demolition areas within all three communities.
Sogunro however told a different story. The Sogunro community representative Bola Ayande said residents preferred financial compensation, suggesting that each affected resident be paid approximately N10 million noting that an average bamboo house in the area costs about N4 million to build.
Committee Chairman and Majority Leader Noheem Adams expressed frustration at the shifting positions of community representatives during the process, recalling that the communities had initially agreed to compensation before some leaders changed their stance.
Beyond the relocation recommendation the Assembly’s report contained several other significant directives. The committee urged Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to direct the Special Adviser on E-GIS to review and verify the enumeration report submitted by the three communities.
Lawmakers also advised the state government to involve the Oloto of the Otto family in the development of the planned water city project and recognise the family as the original landowners of the area.
The Lagos State Government announced in February 2026 that it plans to invest approximately $10 million in a water city project aimed at modernising the fishing communities in the area, a development that many residents say they were never consulted about before their homes were demolished.
Officials of the Lagos State Building Control Agency also told the committee that some demolished structures had already been reconstructed by residents
The recommendation now goes to Governor Sanwo-Olu for consideration and implementation. Whether the affected families many of whom have lived on Lagos waterfront for generations will accept Agbowa as their new home remains uncertain.
