Ayodele Olalere
Following frequent cases of fraud perpetrated by fraudulent estate agents, the Lagos State government on Tuesday read the riot act to fraudulent real estate operators who are in the habit of exploiting and defrauding residents, warning them to desist from such acts or face wrath of the law. Special Adviser to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Housing, Mrs Toke Benson – Awoyinka, gave the warnings on Tuesday at the press briefing to commemorate the second year in office of the governor.
While reeling out different measures being put in place by the agency to checkmate the excesses of real estate practitioners in the housing industry, she vowed that Sanwo-Olu’s administration would not leave any stone unturned in order to make sure Lagosians get value for their money in the housing industry.
” The State Executive Council has approved two critical Bills as part of the state government’s efforts to sanitize and rebuild the industry. The bills are Mortgage Foreclosure Law and Lagos State Real Estate Regulatory Authority’s Bill 2021 in October 2020.
“The proposed bills have been forwarded to the State House of Assembly. The bills are currently awaiting the endorsement of Mr. Governor before finally becoming Laws”, she said.
Commissioner for Housing, Moruf Akinderu-Fatai, while mentioning some of the achievements of the Ministry in the last two years said as part of the moves to reduce the housing deficit and provide affordable housing for the greater number of residents in the state, Sanwo-Olu’s administration has successfully completed 14 housing schemes within two years.
According to the commissioner, some of the completed schemes include Lateef Jakande Gardens in Igando; Lagos State Affordable Public Housing Scheme, Idale Badagry; LAGOSHOMS Lekki Phase 2; Babatunde Raji Fashola Estate, Courtland Villas Igbokushu among others located across the state.
He said that four out of the number have been completed and awaiting commissioning at Odo Onosa Ayandelu, Agbowa, Magodo/Omole, Gbagada, and Ibeshe, while other ongoing housing projects totaling 21 schemes are being constructed through the budgetary allocation and joint ventures in various parts of the state
Harping on the affordability and accessibility of the housing schemes, the Commissioner revealed that the homes being provided are for both low and high net worth individuals and are located in all parts of the state such as Igando, Igbokusu, Lekki, Badagry, Igbogbo, Odo-Onosa/Ayandelu, Agbowa, Sangotedo, Epe, Ilubirin, Epe and Egan- Igando.
“Based on the all-inclusive stance of the Sanwo-Olu-led administration, there are completed and ongoing projects in all parts of the state, and all categories of residents have the opportunity of accessing the housing provision,” the Commissioner said.
On the strategies to tackle the housing deficit, Akinderu-Fatai hinted that the state government is already engaging multinational development partners for the construction of mass housing in the state. He pointed out that henceforth housing provision will be in the realm of thousands of homes so as to drastically reduce the housing challenges in the state.
The commissioner commended Governor Sanwo-Olu for his uncommon passion at ensuring that a greater number of residents achieved their dream of becoming homeowners, adding that his unalloyed commitment towards providing decent and stable shelter for Lagosians deserves commendations.
Akinderu-Fatai, however, appealed to private sector developers to actively partner with the State government in the provision of more homes for the citizens due to the rapid population growth of Lagos.
