By Olasunkanmi Akoni
Following series of complaints and condemnation, stakeholders and concerned residents, in very large number, Tuesday, stormed the Lagos State House of Assembly, where they unanimously asked Governor Akinwunmi Ambode’s led administration to return to “status quo” before the newly hiked Lagos Land Use Charge, LUC, as well as cancellation of it, in the interest of the masses and principle of fairness.

They made the remarks, at A Day Public Hearing on the controversial amendment of Lagos State LUC (Amendment) Law 2018, organised by a Six Man Ad-hoc Committee of the state House of Assembly, chaired by Bayo Oshinawo.

Cross section of Nigeria Bar Association[NBA] and others Human Right Activist Protest against Land Use Charge Increment, Motor Rates &Taxes, Court Fees, Bore Hole Taxes and others Levies, From Ikeja Other Bridge to Lagos state House of Assembly, Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos, Yesterday. Photo: Bunmi Azeez

However, there was a mild drama during the proceeding as members of the Nigeria Bar Association, NBA, Ikeja Branch, staged a walk out during the hearing, in apparent dissatisfaction with the processes adopted by the Assembly based on inadequate time frame and unavailability of the principal law in the public space for meaningful contribution on the amendment of the LUC Law 2018.

Also, the Joint Action Forum (JAF) and its teeming members, led by the chairman, Abiodun Aremu, also stormed out of the meeting, saying that the forum would stage a protest on Thursday, March 29, in continuation to show their grievance against the law, described as, “Anti-people’s law.”

Ogunlana Adesina, chairman, NBA, Ikeja branch, before the commencement of deliberations at the sitting, demanded for postponement of the public hearing, citing what it called a 24-hour notice, sent to the association, which he claimed was too short.

Beside, Adesina stressed that the principal law had not been made available to the people, despite earlier request by NBA to the office of the Speaker of the House, Mudaishiru Obasa.

To this effect, he called for the the postponement of the forum by two weeks into. April, after the Easter holidays, as well as make the law sufficiently available to the public.

According to Adesina, “We can’t make any meaningful inputs into a law that that has not been made available to us. What is worth doing at all is worth doing well.”

Obasa, however, persuaded the NBA to allow the proceedin take place because the issues in contention in the law, which drew the public outcry were well known.

But this did not go down well with NBA members, civil society as they staged a walk out from the public hearing.