Lagos State commissioner for environment and water resources, Tokunbo Wahab, has berated South-East politicians, particularly Anambra senator Victor Umeh, for what he described as their selective outrage and hypocrisy over demolitions carried out by the Lagos State government.

Mr Wahab, in a post on X (formerly Twitter) Monday night, said it was hypocritical for South-East politicians and commentators to loudly condemn Lagos demolitions while turning a blind eye to similar enforcement actions by governors in their home states.

“When it comes to Lagos State, every Tom, Dick and Harry has an opinion,” Mr Wahab wrote. “Was it illegal when Gov. Alex Otti removed contraventions in Abia State? Was it also illegal when Gov. Chukwuma Soludo removed contraventions in Anambra? Here in Lagos, every of our actions is backed by the law and we stand by it all. We remain committed to enforcing the laws without distraction, irrespective of whose ox is gored!”

His remarks followed Senator Victor Umeh’s condemnation of the Lagos government’s demolition of parts of the Trade Fair Complex, which the lawmaker described as “unlawful and unconstitutional.”

Speaking on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Monday, Mr Umeh — who represents Anambra Central and is a former national chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) — accused the Lagos government of overstepping its jurisdiction.

“The country is governed by laws and the constitution,” Mr Umeh said. “I’m disappointed that the Commissioner for Physical Planning in Lagos State came on air to justify an illegal action.”

According to the senator, the Trade Fair Complex is a federal property under the management of the federal government through the Trade Fair Management Board, not the Lagos State government.

“The Trade Fair Complex is a federal establishment where the Lagos State Government moved in with heavy machinery to destroy people’s properties and investments without justification,” he argued. “Federal lands are managed by federal agencies, not state governments. Such properties are recorded in the Federal Land Registry in Ikoyi, not in the Lagos Land Registry in Alausa.”

Mr Umeh, who is also a fellow of the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers, said Lagos had no legal right to act on federal land. He added that the Trade Fair Management Board had always been responsible for all administrative duties, including development approvals, property rates, and ground rent.

“The Lagos State Government has never performed any of these duties there until about two weeks ago when they moved in to demolish buildings on September 25,” he added, describing the action as an “intrusion” done without prior notice to the board or affected traders.

The senator also rejected claims that the demolished structures were illegal or built on canals, insisting that “all the structures were duly approved by the Trade Fair Management Board.”

In recent years, governors in Abia, Anambra, and Imo states have undertaken large-scale demolition and urban renewal projects, often displacing thousands.