The Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Landmark Beach Resort, Paul Onwuanibe, has accused the Federal Government of failing to compensate his company nearly nine months after the demolition of its $200 million resort in Oniru, Lagos State.
Onwuanibe, speaking in an interview aired on Sunday and monitored by The Point, expressed concern that such actions could deter foreign direct investment in Nigeria.
The destruction, which began on April 29, 2024, was intended to make room for the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project.
However, despite the government’s announcement of a N2.75 billion payout to impacted property owners, Landmark Group has not been included in the compensation package.
“Not a penny. Till date, we haven’t been compensated. Nobody has written to me or promised to compensate,” Onwuanibe said.
According to him, the land was acquired from the government in 2006 for $17 million, and an additional $30 million loan was secured to develop the resort.
He detailed the brief notice given before the demolition, saying “We were given seven days’ notice. To be fair, it took another two or three months to get it. But to this day, no one has picked up the phone, called or written to me to explain the situation or offer me compensation.”
He also lamented the abruptness of the demolition, which disrupted ongoing activities in the complex.
“We had a beach hotel, and people were sleeping there when the demolition started. We didn’t have time to remove TVs from the walls, mattresses from the beds, or plates from the kitchen. There were guests in the pool when this happened,” he lamented.
Onwuanibe highlighted the broader economic impact of the demolition, noting that the resort had over 160,000 members and employed many.
He criticized the prioritization of the highway project over socio-economic activities, stating, “Someone or a group of people decided that a road infrastructure project is more important than the socio-economic activities along this 700-kilometer coastline. Unfortunately, I was in the first kilometer.”
