For hundreds of traders at Owode Onirin Motor Spare Parts Market in Lagos, what started as a regular March morning became a nightmare that has refused to end. The sharp crackle of gunshots before dawn on March 6 jolted many from sleep. By the time the dust settled, over 500 shops were reduced to rubble, and goods worth millions of naira destroyed — the result of a demolition exercise many say was never meant for them.
Now, nearly four months later, the battle has moved to the courtroom, with Justice M. A. Savage of the Lagos State High Court in Ikeja adjourning the case to October 13, 2025. The judge ordered all parties to “maintain the status quo” until the legal dispute is fully resolved.
But even that court order has failed to stop the chaos.
Traders say on June 19 — despite the earlier injunction — the same group of landgrabbers, aided by thugs and allegedly backed by armed policemen, returned to continue the destruction. The attackers reportedly fired gunshots into the air to scatter shop owners and workers. More shops were pulled down. More lives disrupted. And this time, even towing vehicles from the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) were allegedly spotted removing cars from the market.
“They came like thieves in the night, again,” said a visibly shaken trader who identified himself as Kunle, holding up a phone with photos of what used to be his thriving auto parts store. “The judge had ordered everyone to stop, but they ignored the court. Where do they expect us to go?”
The case — B. I. Olowu vs Shomolu Local Government and Kosofe Local Government (Suit No. ID/1757/1994) — has dragged on for decades. But the fresh demolition, said to be tied to a judgment intended for the Agbajoowo Market next door, has ignited a storm of controversy. The traders insist that the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA) and other officials overstepped their mandate, extending the operation into Owode Onirin without legal justification.
“They were enforcing a judgment that had nothing to do with us,” said one shop owner, still recovering from injuries sustained during the June raid. “We’re not criminals. We’re citizens trying to make a living. Yet, we’re being treated like squatters on land we’ve occupied legally for years.”
Human rights groups like the Centre for Human and Socio-Economic Rights (CHSR) have also stepped in. Its president, Comrade Alex Omotehinse, addressed a strongly worded petition to the Assistant Inspector General of Police, Zone 2, alleging repeated armed invasions led by landgrabbers with police complicity.
“This is no longer just about property,” Omotehinse said. “This is about human lives, safety, and the rule of law. If the courts can be ignored with such impunity, then we are in real danger as a society.”
Despite multiple petitions to the Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly and Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, many traders say their cries have been met with silence. They now place their hopes solely in the hands of the judiciary.
“We just want our shops, our peace, and our dignity back,” said another trader, his voice thick with emotion. “We’re not asking for favors. We’re asking for justice.”
