₦airaland Forum

The Federal Government has suspended all previously approved, pending, and planned applications for land allocations and Certificates of Occupancy (C of O) on islands and lagoons, directing that they be resubmitted to the Office of the Surveyor-General of the Federation (OSGOF) for proper coordination.

The move follows a presidential directive issued on 30 July 2025 by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, placing a moratorium on shoreline, coastal road, island, lagoon, and other federal legacy infrastructure developments nationwide.

Surveyor-General of the Federation, Abduganiyu Adegbomehin, announced the suspension in a statement on Sunday, stressing that it was necessary to prevent distortions to the Federal Infrastructural Master Plan in line with the National Geospatial Data Infrastructure Policy (NGDI).

“All approved, pending, and intended requests for issuance of Allocations and Certificates of Occupancy on Island and Lagoon Developments are hereby suspended and must be submitted for proper survey coordination to the Presidency, through the Office of the Surveyor-General of the Federation,” the directive stated.

The government also warned that any developments encroaching on rights-of-way, or carried out without proper survey coordination, would be demolished.


It added that land approvals granted outside the Presidency or OSGOF — including backdated or irregular titles issued by other agencies — would be revoked.

The National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), which had previously granted approvals for shoreline and lagoon projects, has now been ordered to submit all such approvals to the Presidency through OSGOF and desist from issuing new ones.

The statement reminded the public that, under the Survey Coordination Act, Cap S13, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004, OSGOF is the sole body mandated to regulate, standardise, and harmonise all survey activities nationwide.

The latest order builds on earlier warnings. In December 2024, the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed Musa Dangiwa, decried unregulated developments along the Lagos shoreline and gave developers a one-month ultimatum to regularise projects or face demolition.

That warning laid the groundwork for President Tinubu’s July 2025 directive suspending all land allocations and reclamation activities on islands, lagoons, and coastal corridors across the country.

The new suspension now formalises the process by centralising approvals under OSGOF, reviewing past and pending allocations, and barring agencies such as NIWA from independently issuing land rights.

bolanto24:
Can somebody explain this, i thought lands belong to the states. Or excluding the waterways and islands?

iwaeda:
Reason we moved Surveyor's General office to Presidency. Truth is that no matter what they acquired, six feet ends ALL MEN.

franchasng:
Hahahaha, government of the Yorubas, by the Yorubas, for the Yorubas. Even The Surveyor General of Nigeria, Tinubu still appointed his Yoruba brother.


Nigeria have never had it this bad since independence, ire oh

bolanto24:
Can somebody explain this, i thought lands belong to the states. Or excluding the waterways and islands?

Brendaniel:
Funny thing is they are the ones who accuse Igbos of the crimes they either intend to commit or actually committing

franchasng:
To them now that they are the ones planting tribalism and nepotism in Nigeria under Tinubu's regime, it's politics, but wait until table turns and watch their reaction.

God will keep us all alive

franchasng:
To them now that they are the ones planting tribalism and nepotism in Nigeria under Tinubu's regime, it's politics, but wait until table turns and watch their reaction.

God will keep us all alive

Slayar:
This is not good for investor confidence ,will the money be returned to them

franchasng:
Hahahaha, government of the Yorubas, by the Yorubas, for the Yorubas. Even The Surveyor General of Nigeria, Tinubu still appointed his Yoruba brother.


Nigeria have never had it this bad since independence, ire oh

tunde1200:
Good question of the day.
Imagine thise that have paid

chukwutee:
THANK YOU MR. President ! Finally we have a president that takes the bull by the horn! Anytime southwest is taking the right directions, you will see zik and ojukwu people foaming in their mouth, even the ones that have never stepped their yam legs in Lagos??

TimeManager:
Thank you Mr President for saving our shorelines. God bless you for putting a stop to this mess. These people do not even mind selling off our waters as long as there's someone who could pay for it, even the sands we walk on won't be spared. Leave the shorelines alone for us to enjoy the nature, just like the way it was growing up. How do we have to pay before seeing the beauty of nature at the beach?, a body of water behind my backyard, I have to pay to see it, why?, because some people bought it and erected some structures on it?. I salute Mr President for putting his feet down to sound a note of warning to all those concerned, all coastlines, Lagoons, waterways belongs to the FG and must not be turned into commercial transactions.

-Kiss the truth!

TimeManager:
Thank you Mr President for saving our shorelines. God bless you for putting a stop to this mess. These people do not even mind selling off our waters as long as there's someone who could pay for it, even the sands we walk on won't be spared. Leave the shorelines alone for us to enjoy the nature, just like the way it was growing up. How do we have to pay before seeing the beauty of nature at the beach?, a body of water behind my backyard, I have to pay to see it, why?, because some people bought it and erected some structures on it?. I salute Mr President for putting his feet down to sound a note of warning to all those concerned, all coastlines, Lagoons, waterways belongs to the FG and must not be turned into commercial transactions.

-Kiss the truth!