By Eberechi Obinagwam
United Labour Congress of Nigeria has disclosed that over 55, 000 individuals and families have been evicted by Lagos State government during the coronavirus pandemic.
The union in a statement by the president, Joe Ajaero, said the figure was from the demolition and subsequent homelessness of thousands of families and individuals in Yaya Abatan, Ogba and other parts of Lagos in the midst of the pandemic.
Ajaero suggested that those already affected by the eviction should be provided with Housing in vacant Lagos Housing projects scattered over the state until this pandemic is contained.
“Why would the Lagos state government chose to hide under the cover of the Lockdown to demolish the houses of its citizens?
“Did the government ever consider the plight of these impacted citizens? Did it ever consider where they will stay during this lockdown? Did they ever imagine the exposure this will be for these thousands of families and individuals? Did they ever consider its implications on the entire struggle to contain the Pandemic?
“How can you tell people to Lockdown at home but you go ahead and destroy their homes? In other nations of the world, homeless individuals are provided with homes at this time but in Nigeria, people are made homeless by the same government! This is clearly contradictory and Sanwolu should immediately take preemptive actions to protect these lives.
“It makes a lie of all the pretensions of seriousness in combating the COVID-19 pandemic.
“A government that is serious about fighting the outbreak would have at least waited for the scourge to be contained before taking such insensitive and unacceptable action.
“It shows the governor as having some other intentions which it is prepared to pursue no matter its consequences on the lives of the citizenry. This is condemnable and most horrendous.
“The actions of the ruling elite in Nigeria tend to portray them as individuals who pretend to lead by going through the motions of governance without any real intentions of making significant impact on the lives of the people. What happens then is that what they pursue on paper is usually different from what they actually do. This is a danger to all of us a a people if we use it in our COVID-19 pandemic battle. Seriousness and commitment is required for success in this battle.”
Also, the union has questioned the action of the Lagos state government to arrest hundreds of individuals from FESTAC town and other parts of Lagos.
The union disclosed that between Thursday and Friday, Lagos State government herded the individuals into black Maria, took them to Panti and then to Area F Police station and remanded them in this same number at the Police Cells.
The union expressing concern said:” We are aghast that the state government which understands the consequences of crowding amidst the Pandemic and which has preached and urged citizens to maintain social and Physical distancing will allow itself to be carried away in trying to enforce the COVID-19 regulations.
“We wonder what it was thinking herding these men and women together at this time! We want to know whether it never thought of the contagion effect of this action? You cannot create a situation that exacerbates the pandemic by pretending to resolve it. You cannot contain the pandemic by actions that clearly encourages its spread as what the government has done in this case does.”
He said another worrying angle to this is that they understand that the penalty for the offense which these individuals have committed is a fine of N2,000 (Two thousand Naira) only on conviction. “Why would we endanger the whole nation by pursuing the fine which these individuals will pay?
“ULC wants to know whether Lagos state government is more interested in pursuing the fine or in the containment of the COVID-19 pandemic? If it is interested in the money only then, it is doing the right thing but endangers not just Lagos state but the whole country but if it is pursuing containment, then, it has clearly acted with utmost indiscretion.
“We also wants all Nigerians to know that any infected person anywhere in Nigeria puts every Nigerian at risk considering the virulent nature of this virus.
“It is only by standing for each other across the nation that we can defeat the Pandemic. No government should be allowed to negate our collective struggle against this pandemic at this time.
“It pays governments to walk their talks.” he said.
