The Lagos chapter of the Amalgamated Union of Motor Mechanics and Technicians of Nigeria is accusing state-backed interests of unlawfully demolishing 15 workshops in a government-approved mechanic village. In this report, JUSTICE OKAMGBA explores the clash between Lagos’ urban development drive and the rights of informal workers.

The Nigeria Labour Congress and the Amalgamated Union of Motor Mechanics and Technicians of Nigeria are demanding justice after Lagos State authorities demolished 15 workshops at the Otumara Mechanic Village in Costain, Ebute-Metta, describing the move as unlawful and economically devastating.

The demolition, which took place on March 7, 2025, left dozens of artisans, including mechanics, panel beaters, electricians, spray painters, and air-conditioning technicians, without livelihoods, with the union alleging the action was a “fraudulent land grab” disguised as an urban renewal initiative.

The union claims the Otumara Mechanic Village was established in 1980 under former Governor Lateef Jakande, who allocated the swampy land to support Lagos’ growing automotive repair sector. Over time, union members transformed the site into a bustling hub of informal economic activity.

Each workshop, formally allocated through the Ministry of Transportation in 1989, reportedly supported multiple trades and generated significant revenue critical to the city’s transportation sector. The union estimates over 100 workers and their families have now been affected.

The Nigeria Labour Congress, Lagos State chapter, Chairman Agnes Funmi, accused state officials of intercepting or downplaying the union’s appeals to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu.

“Several letters have been written to the government, but we believe they’ve been intercepted or downplayed, preventing the governor from seeing them,” Funmi said at the press conference on June 27 in Lagos.

“We urge you to take action without involving those who might hinder progress,” Funmi added.

According to documents shared with The PUNCH, the crisis began on February 11, 2025, when the Lagos State Building Control Agency issued contravention notices to parts of the Otumara community. The union said it presented valid land allocation documents, prompting officials to bypass the workshops.

But on February 18, officials from the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development served a two-day eviction notice. Once again, union members submitted proof of legal occupation, and the officials reportedly withdrew.

A day later, precisely February 19, the union escalated the matter to the Ministry of Transportation, which referred them to the Ministry of Physical Planning. The latter, the union claims, denied issuing the eviction notice and assured members that the workshops would not be touched.

Despite those assurances, bulldozers backed by security personnel and individuals described by witnesses as “hoodlums” arrived on March 7 and demolished the facilities.

Union members said they were chased off the site at gunpoint.

The AUOMMATON’s Lagos State Chairman, Julius Lawa, argues that the workshops had been legally allocated by the state government and had operated in full compliance with its regulations for over four decades.

“We’ve been lawful tenants since 1980, paying our ground rent and supporting Lagos’s economy. This demolition wasn’t just illegal; it was a direct attack on our existence,” Lawa said.

“This act has destroyed lives and livelihoods,” AUOMMATON’s State Secretary, Abdul Yusuf, said. “Private interests are hiding behind government machinery to grab land that belongs to the people.”

“This was no mistake,” Yusuf insisted. “It was a calculated move to deprive law-abiding citizens of their means of survival.”

When contacted for comment, the Deputy Director at the Lagos State Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, Onyebola Akintobi, declined to respond directly to the allegations.

“Please direct your enquiries to the appropriate quarters through the office of the Permanent Secretary of either the Ministry of Information or the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development,” he told our correspondent.

The Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotoso, did not respond to calls or messages.

Protest, legal action

Funmi emphasised AUOMMATON’s role as an organised NLC affiliate, warning of broader labour action. “We won’t let their rights be trampled. If one of us is harmed, we all feel the impact,” she said.

“We don’t want to escalate this to a point where all Lagos state workers join forces in protest or disruptive actions.” She urged the government to recognise the mechanics’ economic contributions, noting their absence could disrupt Lagos’ transportation system.

“We request that their workshop be relocated or allowed to continue operations, considering their contribution to the state’s economy and the governor’s reputation as a passionate and accommodating leader.”

Adding a legal dimension, Jiti Ogunye of Jiti Ogunye Chambers, who has pledged to represent AUOMMATON, condemned the demolition as a violation of established state policy. “In the name of development, a policy carefully established by the Lagos State Government is being undermined,” Ogunye said.

He highlighted the Jakande administration’s initiative to confine roadside mechanics to designated villages, with the Ministry of Transportation overseeing allocations and the Ministry of Physical and Urban Planning designing structured layouts, including specific trades like mechanics, panel beating, welding, and electrical work.

“There’s no doubt that land was acquired and granted to these artisans in designated mechanic villages across Lagos,” Ogunye said at the press conference. “But now, it seems these villages are being taken over because of land pressure.

“The Land Use Act allows land for public purposes, but public purpose isn’t just roads or hospitals; it can include supporting artisans’ livelihoods.”

The legal luminary warned that the government’s actions risk eroding trust in its land management policies and vowed to pursue legal action if the state does not relocate the artisans or provide adequate compensation.

“We don’t know what the future holds for these artisans if this continues,” he added.

The mechanics had previously engaged lawyer Paul Ogunnubi, who sent a formal complaint to Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on March 19, 2025, with copies to the Ministries of Transportation, Justice, and Physical and Urban Planning. A follow-up letter on May 5 received no response, prompting the union to go public with its grievances.

The copies of these letters were obtained by The PUNCH.

The incident risks straining relations between Sanwo-Olu’s administration and organised labour, a powerful force in Nigeria’s economic landscape, the Lagos NLC chair warned.

Lagos, contributing over 30 per cent of Nigeria’s GDP, is under pressure to balance rapid urbanisation with the rights of informal workers. The demolition could fuel broader discontent, especially as Nigeria grapples with high unemployment and troubling inflation.

Economic and social stakes