By Olasunkanmi Akoni
LAGOS — As controversy continues to trail the passage of Tenancy Bill, Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State, yesterday, signed the Bill into law. The law is aimed at regulating the relationship between the landlords and tenants in the state.

Similarly, as part of efforts to improve the efficiency of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency LASEMA, the Lagos State House of Assembly has amended the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency Law 16 of 2008.

In assenting the Tenancy and Lagos Park and Garden Bills, Fashola said by the provision of the law, “any landlord that collects rent in excess of six months for a sitting tenant and one year from a new tenant will either be jailed for three months or pay N100.000 fine.”

Fashola said: “The issues at stake in the new laws are serious moral issues that requires voluntary compliance rather than strict enforcement from government. The problem of corruption cannot be fought in the country with this kind of situation that requires a tenant to pay two or more years rent in advance.

“The law protects both the tenants and the landlords, there is no need for the landlords and tenants to panic over the law as there are provisions in the law that makes it impossible for the tenant to be elusive and shy away from their obligations to the landlords.

Harping on the importance of the Lagos Parks and Garden law, he said the bill was in furtherance of the state government determination to deal with the problem of climate change, saying greening of the parks and garden is part of the preventive healthcare .