Why Lagos Govt Wants To Demolish Paul Onwuanibe’s $200m Landmark Beach Resort

Lagos State Government plans to demolish a section of the Landmark Beach Resort to make way for the construction of the coastal highway as part of the Lagos-Calabar road project.

This was contained in a letter addressed to the proprietor of Landmark Beach Resort, Paul Onwuanibe, dated March 19, 2024, and signed by Tpl Shomolu O., Deputy Director of the Development Matters Department on behalf of the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development’s Permanent Secretary.

In the letter, Lagos state authorities informed Onwuanibe that he has seven days to vacate his multimillion-dollar beach resort for demolition.

Onwuanibe, 58, explained that the government said his Landmark Beach resort had to be removed as it “falls within the right of way” of a planned 700-kilometer (435-mile) coastal highway designed to link the former capital city to Calabar, a port city near the border with Cameroon.

He told CNN he acquired the land in 2007 before plans for the coastal highway were drafted, expressed a range of emotions upon receiving the demolition notice, which also instructed him to file compensation claims.

“One was amazement, second was concern and the third one was, ‘is this real or is this an April Fools’ (Day prank in) advance?’” Onwuanibe said.

The proposed demolition includes sections of the property such as the Beach Resort, Kids and Bay Arena, Members Area, and Lagos Beach Club, as they encroach within the Right of Way of the planned road project by 50 meters.

The Landmark Beach Resort, valued at over $200 million, hosts over 80 businesses, provides more than 4,000 direct jobs, and generates over 2 billion naira ($1.5 million) in annual tax revenue.

Onwuanibe said that foreign and local investors in Landmark Group are considering withdrawing their support if the beach resort is demolished.

“Without the beach, the entire ecosystem is at risk and is severely damaged,” he said, adding: “I have had widespread panic calls from my international and local investors as well as local debt providers threatening to pull the plug as they think this is material to our survival as a business.”

The Lagos state government had previously published notices of the demolition in two national newspapers.

The federal authorities approved the new coastal road on February 27, with the first phase to be constructed on Victoria Island and eventually spanning nine coastal states in Nigeria.

KanyiDaily recalls that Lagos State Government had vowed that more structures will go down amid controversies surrounding the demolition of buildings in the state.