The Lagos State Government has demolished the popular car showroom owned by social media influencer and car dealer, Ola of Lagos, Waris Olayinka Akinwande.
The demolition was first revealed in a viral TikTok video posted on Saturday evening by another car dealer known as Ibilo.
In the video, the remains of the demolished property could be seen as Ibilo captioned: “Lagos State Government Demolishes OOL Autos. Heavy one today.”
As of press time, the Lagos State Government has not issued any official statement on the demolition, leaving the reason for the action unconfirmed.
However, several social media users have speculated that the structure was brought down because it was allegedly built beneath a high-tension power line, a clear violation of safety and urban planning regulations in the state.
One TikTok user identified as Adekunle Autoparts commented, “They demolished it because he built it under a power line.”
Another user, Sisi Noni, while expressing concern over the manner of the demolition, wrote, “I’m not trying to sound hateful but the first time I saw this structure, my eyes got hold of the high tension. But as usual, I felt the country doesn’t send anymore once you have money.
“Building under the high tension is very risky. But at the same time, they should have asked him to relocate — maybe they would have dismantled the structure without destroying it so he can make use of some of those materials in his new site.”
SaharaReporters had reported how the Lagos State government on Saturday demolished no fewer than 17 houses illegally built on the Right of Way (RoW) of the Ikota River alignment in the Lekki area of the state.
The state’s Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, led a monitoring and enforcement team, accompanied by journalists, to the demolition site, warning residents against actions that destroy the environment and obstruct natural water channels.
Wahab said the ministry had received reports months earlier about illegal reclamation activities aimed at narrowing the river’s RoW.
“We stopped them then, but we were alerted again recently that the encroachment had resumed aggressively, with attempts to sell to unsuspecting buyers,” Wahab said.
He noted that the latest demolition was part of a broader effort to reclaim and protect flood-prone areas of the state, stressing that those behind the illegal developments would be identified and prosecuted.
Recovered evidence from the site showed several ongoing reclamation projects, sand-filling operations, and partially completed structures built directly on the natural water channel.
