Nigeria’s Minister of Works, David Umahi, has accused Landmark Africa of “land grabbing” on the Lagos beachfront and threatened legal action against its chief executive, Paul Onwuanibe, over claims surrounding the impact of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway on the business.
Speaking in an interview with ARISE News, Umahi strongly disputed Onwuanibe’s account of the losses Landmark suffered following the Federal Government’s demolition of structures along the highway’s right of way.
“He was land grabbing,” Umahi said, referring to Landmark’s occupation of portions of the beachfront affected by the project.
The Works Minister challenged Onwuanibe to make public the company’s Certificate of Occupancy and other documents establishing its legal title to the affected land.
“Let him publish his C of O,” Umahi said.
He maintained that the Federal Government had deliberately adjusted the highway around Landmark’s permanent structures to prevent the destruction of its main facilities.
“We saved his permanent structure,” Umahi said, arguing that what was removed consisted largely of “shanties” erected along the beachfront rather than Landmark’s principal permanent development.
Umahi also rejected claims about the scale of Landmark’s financial losses, pointing to what he described as inconsistencies in figures publicly associated with the company.
He said Onwuanibe had previously spoken of investments worth about $250 million but had more recently cited losses of about ₦42 billion arising from the demolition.
The minister questioned the basis of those figures and said the government should not be portrayed as having arbitrarily destroyed a legitimate investment without regard for ownership or compensation rights.
Umahi said smaller businesses and other affected occupants who were entitled to compensation had been identified and compensated by the government.
He said the affected people were enumerated and payments made directly into their bank accounts, maintaining that the compensation process was transparent.
The minister then warned that the continuing public claims surrounding Landmark could result in legal action.
“If he doesn’t refrain from misleading the public, I may take him to court,” Umahi said.
The dispute over Landmark became one of the earliest major controversies surrounding construction of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway after the Federal Government demolished parts of the Landmark Beach complex in April 2024 to clear the project’s right of way.
Onwuanibe has publicly maintained that the demolition caused significant losses to the Landmark ecosystem and businesses operating within it, while the Federal Government has consistently argued that the affected structures were within the highway’s legally established corridor.
Umahi maintained that the government had gone out of its way to preserve Landmark’s principal investment, saying the highway was effectively divided around the permanent structure rather than demolishing it.
He insisted that the disagreement should ultimately be resolved on the basis of documentary evidence establishing ownership of the beachfront land.
Demola Ojo
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