DESPITE repeated assurances on building safety by the Lagos State Government, weak inspection and regulatory lapses nearly cost the lives of hundreds of students in the Ogba area of Lagos State on Monday, March 9.
According to reports, hundreds of pupils and teachers of Yemco Nursery, Primary and Comprehensive College narrowly escaped death after a resident noticed signs of distress on the building housing their school and raised the alarm.
This promptly forced an emergency evacuation of the children and their teachers. The building collapsed a few minutes later.
The building, located at 11 Adudatu Street in the Aguda axis of Ogba, collapsed around midday, barely three minutes after students and staff vacated the structure.
Reports indicate that an elderly man called the attention of the school authorities when he realised that the structure showed signs of distress.
“At first, the house started cracking little by little. The window frames had already fallen apart. After some minutes, the cement body of the house began peeling off. Not long after that, the building just sank,” TheCable quoted a source to have said.
Officials of the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service later arrived at the scene and secured the area.
No casualty had been reported as of the time of filing this report.
Gaps in building inspection by government
The narrow escape has renewed concerns over weak monitoring of buildings in Lagos, where the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA), the Lagos State Physical Planning Permit Authority (LASPPPA), and related institutions often fails in their responsibilities.
Experts say the latest incident highlights persistent failures in inspection and enforcement by LASBCA and other building control agencies.
In 2025, The ICIR reported how building collapse remained a recurring tragedy in the nation’s commercial hub despite several regulatory reforms reportedly introduced over the years.
The ICIR investigation revealed that Lagos accounted for over 55 per cent of all building collapses in Nigeria since 1974.
Between October 1974 and January 2025, at least 640 incidents were recorded nationwide, with more than half occurring in Lagos.
The building collapses were attributed to the weak enforcement of building regulations, corruption within oversight agencies, non-compliance with safety standards and the use of substandard materials.
In April 2025, a three-storey building housing the Equal Rights Restaurant and Bar collapsed in Ojodu-Berger during business hours, killing two people and injuring more than 20 others.
In May, a two-storey structure under construction in the Idi-Araba area of Mushin collapsed during the early hours. The incident claimed the life of one labourer, while three others narrowly escaped. Residents said the building was like a bomb waiting to explode.
Later that month, the Ota-Ona community in Ikorodu was thrown into mourning when a two-storey uncompleted building collapsed, killing three members of the same family: 16-year-old Maleek, his 13-year-old sister Ameerah, and their uncle Bolaji.
In September 2025, a similar incident occurred in the Yaba district of Lagos, where a three-storey building under construction gave way, killing one person and injuring several others.
One of the deadliest incidents occurred in 2021 when a 21-storey luxury high-rise crumbled in Ikoyi, killing 46 people, including the developer, Femi Osibona.
Investigations later revealed that the structure exceeded the number of floors originally approved by regulators.
More recently, in February 2026, The ICIR reported how police barracks are in decrepit state right under LABSCA’s nose in the Ikeja area of the state.
Sanwo-Olu’s reforms face scrutiny
To address the recurring disasters, Sanwo-Olu launched the Certified Accreditors Programme in March 2025, bringing private sector professionals into the building inspection process.
CAP, which arose from recommendations by a 2021 advisory panel, allows accredited experts to review project drawings, monitor construction stages, and flag illegal structures in coordination with regulators.
This initiative aims to strengthen building regulations and ensure stricter compliance with safety standards.
The Lagos government also said it had intensified enforcement operations and strengthened collaboration among regulatory agencies responsible for monitoring construction activities.
Sanwo-Olu’s Chief Press Secretary (CPS), Gboyega Akosile, said the government was committed to ensuring strict adherence to building regulations and would continue to penalise those who flout the law.
Despite these measures, experts believe that without sustained political will, transparent enforcement, and public accountability, Lagos might continue to record preventable building disasters.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M