The Association of Igbo Town Unions (ASITU) has reported the Lagos State government before the United Nations Human Rights Council, (UNHRC) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) over alleged destruction of Igbo property.
The association also condemned in the strongest terms what they perceived as ongoing systematic demolition of lawfully acquired properties belonging to Igbo people in Lagos State.
This was made known by the national president of ASITU, Chief Emeka Diwe while addressing newsmen in Owerri, the capital of Imo State.
He stressed that the demolition of trading plazas belonging to Igbo businessmen at Ebute Ero Market in Lagos on Friday, February 14, 2025 by agents of the Lagos State Government amounts to a calculated expropriation of Igbo people from their legitimate businesses.
He said, “It represents an assault on justice, equality, and the fundamental principles of property rights.
“Despite repeated appeals for fairness and adherence to the rule of law, the Lagos State Government has continued its brazen campaign of selective demolition, disproportionately targeting Igbo-owned properties under various pretexts. It must be noted that these buildings and businesses complexes being demolished were never illegally built. They all came into being through the authorization of this same government masterminding their destruction today. ”
According to ASITU, this anti-Igbo brigandage in Lagos is totally unacceptable and cannot be tolerated anymore because it is reminiscent of the litany of injustices which our people have had to endure in Nigeria historically.
“Given the failure of domestic institutions in Nigeria to address these grievances and rein in on the ravages levied against our hardworking patriots in Lagos, ASITU has formally petitioned the following international bodies to intervene and hold the Lagos State Government accountable for these atrocious acts.
“The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) to investigate Lagos State’s actions as a violation of fundamental human rights, including the right to property, non-discrimination, and freedom from targeted dispossession.
“The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) to bring Nigeria to account under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, which guarantees the protection of property rights for all citizens without bias.
”The ECOWAS Court of Justice to seek legal redress for affected individuals whose rights have been violated in contravention of regional human rights standards.
“Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch – To document these abuses and amplify the plight of the Igbo people facing targeted property destruction.”
Chief Diwe submitted that this is not just a legal battle, “it is a fight for justice, dignity, and equal citizenship in a country that belongs to all Nigerians. We demand an immediate end to these discriminatory actions and full accountability from those responsible.”
ASITU, in view of the foregoing, reiterates its call on Ndigbo in the diaspora to embrace the Aku Ruo Ulo investment initiative, which aims at the gradual, seamless and steady repatriation of a portion of their investments to Igboland, to unleash the potential of our land and make it the oasis of prosperity in Nigeria.
They highlighted that the world is watching and the international community will not stand by while an ethnic group is systematically dispossessed under the guise of governance.
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