Fresh crisis seems to be brewing on Lagos State as the developer of Eko Atlantic City, Messrs Southern Energyx, is laying claims to the ownership of Landmark and Oniru Beaches,among others. DAYO AYEYEMI reports.
As the dust of the demolition of a section of the Landmark Beach Resort is yet to settle, another crisis is brewing as Messrs Southern Energyx Nigeria Limited, is claiming the ownership of the land being occupied by Landmark Beach, Oniru Beach and others in Victoria Island, Lagos.
The management said that the beachfronts and others within the axis are part of land of Eko Atlantic City’s project.
Briefing some journalists at the weekend, Assistant Public Relations officer, Southern Energy, Mr Larry Akanbi, said that various portions of land measuring 182,442 square metres illegally occupied by Landmark Beach Resort and others, formed part of the larger expanse of land measuring 1,037.763 hectares of land which is subject of a Statutory Right of Occupancy granted Southern Energyx by the governor of Lagos State to reclaim the lost land, construct the Great Wall of Lagos and build the Eko Atlantic City.
He said the company relied on both the Certificate of Occupancy No.96/96/2007J dated 30 March 2007 as well as the maps and drawings delineating the 182,442 square metres for its claim
According to him, the illegal occupation of the land is not with the consent or consent of the company’s predecessor in title, adding that the illegal occupants are neither the tenants nor licensees of the company.
Messrs Southern Energyx Nigeria Limited is the developer of Eko Atlantic City.
Akanbi alleged that the management of Landmark Resort Beach and others have been occupying various portions of the land illegally without paying rent to the company.
Landmark defence
It would be recalled that the demolition of structures of the $200million Landmark Beach Resort in Oniru, Victoria Island, commenced on April 29, as a result of its encroachment on the Right-of-Way of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway.
The demolition of part of the Landmark Beach Resort occurred two weeks after sand-filling was done on some portions of the resort.
After the demolition, a visibly worried Paul Onwuanibe, the Group CEO of Landmark, said that the government bulldozer destroyed 70 percent of the beach properties, describing the action as “insensitive.”
He expressed its discontent with the Federal Government’s demolition of its structures but expressed gratitude for public support.
He explained that coastal road was a new project, claiming that he bought this land in 2007, adding that realignment was just made to Landmark Beach front from the road behind.
He said he had several approvals for the development.
FG’s argument
Minister of Works, David Umahi, had defended the demolition of beach, stating that the Landmark Centre was situated on the Federal Government’s Right-of- Way, making the action necessary.
Earlier, the minister had assured that the coastal highway project’s design will only require the removal of 50 meters of shoreline and a few shanties, while “permanent structures” would remain intact.
C-of-O
Earlier, Akanbi, the spokesperson of Energy showed a copy of the Certificate of Occupancy (C-of-O) granted the company, saying, “Southern Energyx was granted a Statutory Right of Occupancy over all the parcel of land measuring 1,037.763 hectares, being reclaimed real estate on which the Eko Atlantic City is being built.”
He said that Landmark beach and Oniru beach, which fell on the alignment of the ongoing construction of the Lagos -Calabar Coastal Highway, were actually part of the land of the company.
He argued that if the beach had not been affected by the Lagos -Calabar Coastal Highway project, it would definitely be taken over by Eko Atlantic City project, when work gets to the location.
He said the management of the company decided to state its own side of the story in order to correct the impression of people out there about Landmark Beach’s demolition.
He said: “What we are trying to do is to put our own fact out to let people know our own side of the story, that we are not enforcing anybody.
“Infact, if anything, we are the one that is the victim because before now, all of them have been enjoying Oniru beach, Landmark beach. It is our land they have been enjoying. Ideally they should be paying us.”
On whether the management of Landmark Beach Resort is aware of this narrative, he said his company had in 2022 written Landmark‘s management and other occupants of the beach front to leave, but refused, describing the ongoing construction of 700- km Lagos -Calabar Road project as an “intervening event.”
Akanbi disclosed that the company also lost reclaimed land worth N87 billion to the realignment of Lagos -Calabar super highway project.
According to him, the company was actually the victim and not the aggressor as being portrayed by the public and the management of Landmark Beach Resort.
Justifying the realignment of Lagos -Calabar Coastal Road, he said that Corporation Way was truly the original alignment.
“Corporation way was truly the original alignment they wanted to use but, if they start from this end, by the time they get to where Queen Event Centre is, the effect of demolition would be more massive than what they have now. They now said okay, there would be lesser demolition.
“Infact there is hardly any serious demolition right now in the sense that what has happened really is not like any of the structure of Landmark is affected. What has been consumed is the beach.
“What the federal government has even done now is to save some of the structures because they said that if they go by their own original alignment, it will consume part of the Event Centre and the mall.”
“The road was bent to the extent that it encroached part of sand filled and reclaimed land for Eko Atlantic City. We lost N87 billion worth of land to the road project.
“Now, our position is that, you did not even own the beach. Where you are using today as the beach is part of our land -Eko Atlantic City and that, ideally you should be paying us money but we have not asked you for any money because we were not in need of the land then.
“Infact that is why we engaged lawyer to recover the money now that they (Landmark) wants to be fighting us,” he said.
He said that claim of Landmark’s CEO that he bought the beach from Oniru family and sand-filled the place with N1.2 billion was not true because his land did not extend to the beach.
According to him, Landmark’s management should come out with the document as a proof if its land actually extended to the beach.
“Infact the Oniru came out himself to show it to the press that he did not sell the beach. Oniru land did not extend to that place,” he said.
Giving the background of what led to the Eko Atlantic City project, the spokesperson said that the Lagos State Government gave the land to the company for reclamation when the state had the challenge of the beach overflow or ocean surge.
“Now our position is that the Lagos state Government gave us a land for reclamation when it had the challenge of the beach overflow. I think they gave it for 78yrs and after that, it goes back to state government,” he said.
The spokesperson of Southern Energy said that in 2013, there was nothing like beach at the location, going by the Google image until 2018 when sand started settling there as a result of the reclamation being done for Eko Atlantic City.
“If you go on Google app, it will show that up to 2018, that beach did not exist at all. It was 2018 we saw progressively when we were doing reclamation. The sand started settling there before he started his business on it,” he said.
“You have being enjoying me without paying me money, you ought to be paying me ideally from the money you make on that beach if I wanted to sit on my right but I’m not even insisting on my right,” he said.
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