Constitutes demolition committee after visit to razed GNI building

Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, yesterday, said that Lagos State in 2025 witnessed high and low points, with the state managing several tragedies and disasters, including fires and floods, while recording successes.

Speaking yesterday at the 2026 Lagos Annual Thanksgiving service, Sanwo-Olu noted that on Christmas Eve, Great Nigeria Insurance House on Lagos Island suffered a major fire outbreak.

“Before then, in September, we experienced another fire at Afriland Towers.

In these incidents – and others we witnessed in 2025 – lives were lost, injuries were sustained, and livelihoods and property were affected. Our hearts go out to the victims, their families, and their loved ones. May God Almighty comfort and strengthen them, in Jesus’ name.

“Even as we seek the face of God for continued protection and safety, we fully recognise our responsibility as a State Government to continue taking every step to improve and enforce safety standards, as well as strengthen emergency response systems.

“This is also a fitting moment to sincerely thank our healthcare workers and emergency responders, who consistently go above and beyond the call of duty.”

The governor noted that through it all, the state remained full of gratitude. Sanwo-Olu said the state government would work tirelessly to ensure that the state was safe and hospitable for everyone.

“Under my leadership, we will continue consolidating the gains of the past six and a half years, guided by our THEMES+ vision. We will complete and commission many transformational projects across multiple sectors and in different parts of the state.

“The year 2026 is particularly significant for me, as it marks my last full year as Governor of Lagos State. For this reason, I am deeply driven and compelled to make this year count – deliberately and decisively. It must be a year of extraordinary meaning, significance, and benefit for all of us.

“Among the many projects we will be commissioning and putting to use this year, there are some that are especially close to my heart. These include the Ojo General Hospital; the Odo Iya-Alaro Link Bridge; the new Massey Children’s Hospital; the Central Food Security Systems and Logistics Hub in Epe; the new Psychiatric Hospital in Ketu Ereyun, Epe; and the new Multi-Storey Office Complex in Alausa.”

He added, “In the area of road infrastructure, we will complete and commission the following projects in 2026. In Ikorodu: the Igbogbo–Bola Ahmed Tinubu-Igbe Road.

Agric Isawo-Konu-Arepo Road, Phase One; the Gberigbe Road, from Ewu Elepe through Gbodu Junction to Gberigbe Town; and the Adamo-Akanun-Agunfoye-Lugbusi Road.

“In Ikeja: the Opebi-Mende Link Bridge and its approach roads. In Eti-Osa: the Eti-Osa/Lekki/Epe Expressway, Phase 2A, from Eleko Junction through Awoyaya to Greensprings, and from Majek to Abraham Adesanya.”

MEANWHILE, the governor has set up a Technical Recovery and Demolition Committee on the Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Building, gutted recently by fire.

The governor visited the scene of the fire incident 10 days after the building and several other buildings were destroyed by the inferno. The 25-storey Great Nigeria Insurance House (GNI) on Martins Street, Lagos Island, went up in flames on Christmas Eve.

The constituted Technical Recovery and Demolition Committee is chaired by the Commissioner for Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Relations, Olugbenga Oyerinde.

The committee is tasked with developing and implementing a controlled and safe demolition plan for the affected structure and its immediate surroundings in the shortest possible time, while prioritising public and responder safety.

There are intermittent pockets of fire, primarily originating from combustible materials such as textiles and clothing stockpiled within the building, not from the structural elements of the building itself.

So far, eight fatalities have been confirmed, with five identified and three yet to be identified. 13 persons were successfully rescued as search operations continue, particularly in safer sections of the debris, to ensure no one remains trapped.