By Nneka Nwogwugwu
Civil societies and communities have condemned the move by the Rivers State government to demolish buildings at waterfront areas of the state thereby forcing eviction of over 60,000 residents.
The societies in a joint statement released on Wednesday stated that the law does not authorize mass evictions nor does it allow the demolition of properties based on feeble suspicion.
The statement was jointly signed by Justice & Empowerment Initiatives (JEI), Nigerian Slum/Informal Settlement Federation, Social Action Collaborative Media Advocacy Platform (CMAP) and Center for Environment, Human Rights, Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth and Development (CEHRD).
According to the statement, “On 19 January 2022, a Rivers State Government Task Force visited several waterfront communities in the Diobu axis of Port Harcourt, arbitrarily marked homes for demolition and told residents to should vacate within 7 days, that is by 26 January 2022.
“Should the Government proceed with its threats, an estimated 60,000 persons will be rendered homeless and driven into poverty by loss of livelihoods and other hardships associated with homelessness and displacement.
“We, the undersigned communities and members of civil society, decry this unlawful and callous threat and call for the Rivers State Government to seriously reconsider its plans before it takes irreversible action that violates the fundamental human rights of 60,000 persons and undermines the security and long-term development goals of all residents of Port Harcourt.”
Speaking on the effects of forced eviction, the groups noted that any person that has witnessed the horrors of forced eviction, where persons are thrown out of their homes and have their livelihoods and communities destroyed overnight, cannot believe this is the path to the security and development of our society.
“We understand that His Excellency, Governor Wike, declared a crackdown on “identified criminal hideouts” in Port Harcourt Township and the Illoabuchi axis of Diobu in his 2022 New Year’s address – a vague menace that has resulted in fear among waterfront communities that have seen previous administrations use fearmongering and smear campaigns to justify forced evictions of waterfront communities like Agip (2004/05), Njemanze (2009) and Abonnema Wharf (2012),” the statement added.
Reacting to the eviction threat, Diobu-axis waterfront communities joined hands on 7 January 2022 to write to the Governor to express their concerns and request an urgent audience with the Governor to discuss how to address security concerns and otherwise seek win-win partnership as an alternative to eviction and demolition. Yet, till date, there has been no positive response to these appeals.
Meanwhile, the reality is that the demolitions being threatened do not target specific criminals or criminal hideouts; instead, they are a pretext for evicting thousands of innocent children, women, men, and elderly persons who are employed in legitimate businesses through which they eke out modest livings, and from which they pay their children’s school fees and government taxes.
Such persons live in Port Harcourt’s informal settlements because of the lack of affordable housing in the formal sector, and they make positive contributions every day to the city’s economy.
“The false impression given to the public must be corrected. The law does not authorize mass evictions nor does it allow the demolition of properties based on feeble suspicion.
“Rather, any person suspected of a crime is to be arrested, prosecuted, and found guilty in line with the right to fair hearing protected by Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution, whereafter the person may face a term of imprisonment or other penalty provided at law.
“Forced evictions as collective punishment are unlawful, unconstitutional, and counter-productive – they do not make our cities safer.
“If the government is allowed to so flagrantly evade the rule of law and take the law into its own hands to trample on the rights of thousands of citizens, then all of society will suffer.
“Injustice will not stop with the poor and those living in informal settlements. This land grabbing will render no one safe from eviction and seizure of all that he or she has worked for in their life,” the statement added.
Appealing to the state government, the groups stated, “We are members of the affected communities. We are members of other communities in Port Harcourt who fear that we will be next should our brothers and sisters fall to the present threat. We are members of communities from other cities who stand in solidarity with those who are under threat today. We are members of civil society who work with the affected communities, visit them on a regular basis, and know their realities – as well as the societal costs of forced eviction.
“We know the communities under threat are ready to work with government in any legitimate law enforcement approach to resolving security concerns and rooting out criminals who may be hiding in different corners of the city. We know the communities under threat are ready to partner with the government to improve their infrastructure and quality of life through in situ upgrading.
“We also know that no good can come of the present threat of eviction, just as no good has come from the long list of prior forced evictions in Port Harcourt. Is our society safer today? Is poverty lessened? Have we gotten rid of informal settlements or simply pushed them from one place to another? We must all ask ourselves these questions rather than blindly following our fears.
“Should the government proceed with the evictions threated on 19 January 2022, over 60,000 more Nigerians will be forced out of their homes and businesses and communities. This is a gross violation of these citizens’ right to fair hearing, right to property, right to adequate shelter, and will equally undermine their right to health and right to education of their children.
“We are deeply concerned that the government would run roughshod over all these rights in the present-day democratic dispensation; we call for a break from the past of such abuses and for the government to partner with us – communities and civil society – to find a better way forward. “
