Human rights lawyer and activist, Comrade Deji Adeyanju, has written an open letter to President Bola Tinubu, calling on the Federal Government to immediately declare a State of Emergency on Nigeria’s housing and rental crisis.
He warned that millions of Nigerians are being subjected to what he described as a “predatory” housing market that is stripping citizens of their dignity and forcing many into poverty.
In the letter addressed to the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Adeyanju argued that the worsening housing situation in major cities such as Abuja and Lagos has become a constitutional and human rights emergency requiring urgent executive intervention.
The activist said ordinary Nigerians, including civil servants, artisans, young professionals, remote workers, middle-income earners and vulnerable families, are increasingly unable to afford decent accommodation due to soaring rents, excessive agency charges, arbitrary service fees and exploitative practices by landlords and estate agents.
“From the sprawling suburbs of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, to the overcrowded residential districts of Lagos State, millions of hardworking Nigerians are being crushed under the weight of an unbridled, hyper-inflationary, and predatory housing market.”
Quoting renowned South African jurist and anti-apartheid activist Albie Sachs, Adeyanju reminded the President that, “A house is more than just a shelter; it is a space where human dignity takes root.”
“Today, Mr. President, that dignity is under systemic siege in Nigeria,” he said.
Drawing attention to Section 14(2)(b) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), Adeyanju noted that the Constitution clearly provides that “the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government.”
He also referenced Sections 16(1)(b) and 16(2)(d), which require the Nigerian government to ensure that suitable and adequate shelter is provided for citizens while preventing the concentration of wealth in the hands of a privileged few.
“When shelter becomes an instrument of extortion, the government abdicates its primary purpose,” he stated.
Adeyanju further relied on Article 11(1) of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), to which Nigeria is a signatory, noting that adequate housing is internationally recognised as a fundamental component of the right to an adequate standard of living.
He also cited repeated positions of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing, stressing that housing should be treated as “a social good, not a speculative financial asset.”
Describing conditions in Abuja and Lagos, Adeyanju said the rental sector has become lawless, with landlords and agents exploiting desperate tenants through multiple arbitrary charges.
He stated that many Nigerians are compelled to pay two to three years’ rent upfront, in addition to several other fees.
According to him, tenants are routinely forced to pay: Agency fees exceeding 10 to 20 percent merely for being introduced to properties.
“So-called legal fees of up to 15 percent, despite the documents often being generic templates allegedly not prepared by qualified lawyers.
“Unregulated service charges that, in many cases, exceed the annual rent itself without transparent accounting.
“Arbitrary caution fees that are rarely refunded after tenancy expires.
“Opportunistic agents routinely force tenants to pay up to 15% in ‘legal fees’ for generic forms that no enrolled lawyer ever touched,” Adeyanju stated.
“By bypassing qualified legal practitioners and downloading template forms, they exploit citizens for professional work that was never actually performed.”
“There can be no genuine urban development or urban renewal without a master plan that explicitly caters to the everyday people who power our national economy,” he wrote.
He added that any meaningful housing policy must ensure that Nigerians can live and work with dignity within reasonable proximity to their sources of livelihood.
He cited Ghana’s Rent Act, which places statutory limits on advance rent collection and is enforced through the country’s Rent Control Department.
He also noted that many developed and developing democracies regulate housing through rent caps, statutory ceilings on fees and tenant protection mechanisms.
“Nigeria cannot remain an outlier in housing governance,” he stated.
The activist urged President Tinubu to exercise his constitutional powers by implementing six major reforms.
He called for the formal declaration of a State of Emergency on Housing and Urban Tenancy to tackle both Nigeria’s housing deficit and what he described as the country’s exploitative rental market.
He proposed the establishment of a Special Presidential Taskforce on Rental Reform, headed by the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, with a 90-day mandate to draft a comprehensive National Housing and Tenancy Policy and transmit an Executive Bill on fair rent standards to the National Assembly where necessary.
“Restricting service charges to a maximum of 5 percent of annual rent, with full transparency and auditing.
“Limiting advance rent payments to one year, with a gradual transition toward monthly rental arrangements.
“Criminalising the collection of unrecoverable caution fees unless supported by audited evidence of actual property damage.”
He urged the Federal Government to establish a Digital Tenant Reporting Platform, backed by an independent ombudsman and rapid-response desk, through which tenants can report exploitative landlords and estate agents.
He also called for severe civil penalties, criminal sanctions and professional disqualification for landlords and agents found guilty of violating tenancy regulations.
Adeyanju urged the Tinubu administration to significantly expand low-cost public housing through increased government investment, tax incentives and Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs), insisting that affordable housing should genuinely reflect Nigeria’s minimum wage and prevailing economic realities.
He reminded President Tinubu that the success of his administration would ultimately be measured not only by economic indicators but by how it protects the dignity of ordinary Nigerians during difficult economic times.
“History will judge this administration not only by its macroeconomic indicators, but by how basic human dignity was safeguarded during times of deep economic transition,” he wrote.
“Securing shelter for our citizens is not an act of charity; it is a constitutional command and a fundamental human right.”
He added that Nigerians suffering under rising rental costs in Abuja, Lagos and other cities are looking to the President for “immediate, uncompromising relief.”
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