Residents tackle Lagos govt over solar tax

Recently, a viral video on social media showing officials of the Lagos State Ministry of Housing confronting a resident over solar panels installed on his home stirred anger among residents of the state.

In the video, officials from the ministry’s monitoring and compliance unit were seen asking the resident to obtain approval and pay a fee before proceeding with the installation.

But in reaction, the state government has said that permits and administrative fees for solar power installations apply only to residents of its social housing estates, not to private homeowners or tenants across the state.

The people’s anger is multifaceted. While some are very angry that the government instead of appreciating the citizens for standing in the gap, it is going after the people with taxes.

Yet, there are others who warned that such requirements could discourage the adoption of renewable energy in a country facing persistent power outages. Those on this side of the argument insist that the state government just wants to see its citizens in darkness and depression.

Reacting in an X post, Wale Ajetunmobi, senior special assistant on media to Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, said the resident misunderstood the policy.

According to him, the state does not impose solar installation fees on all residents.

“This development is true, but the man who made the video seems to be misinformed about the Lagos State Government’s guidelines for installing solar energy systems in social housing estates,” he said.

He explained that only residents living in government-owned social housing estates are charged administrative fees for alterations, including the installation of solar power systems.

Ajetunmobi said the requirement is linked to the government’s responsibility as facility manager of the estates, noting that solar installations are treated as structural alterations, especially when they affect shared spaces or the original design of buildings.

“Only residents living in government-owned social housing estates are charged administrative fees for alterations, such as the installation of a solar power system, before any additional development can be permitted,” he said.

“Any alteration must be processed through the physical planning and survey departments of the ministry of housing for approval, material compliance, and post-inspection checks.

“Those solar power systems are usually installed by occupants in shared areas; so this alteration must be approved by the facility manager (government) before any occupant can proceed.”

He added that the individual in the video is likely a tenant who rented one of the government-owned estates from the property owner and does not fully understand the terms of the indemnity document.

He said the officials seen in the video were from the ministry’s monitoring and compliance unit, adding that the resident did not obtain prior approval before commencing installation.

He said the government previously handled liabilities arising from unapproved modifications, including cases involving roof damage and fire incidents.

“He is likely to be a tenant in one of these social housing estates owned by the Lagos state government, otherwise, he wouldn’t have raised concerns about something that was clearly outlined in the indemnity document he signed before the government handed over the apartment to him after purchase.

“The simple rule for any estate occupant is to contact the state government (facility manager) for approval for any external alteration.”

He added that unapproved changes affecting shared property could expose the government to liabilities involving other residents.

Under the Lagos State Urban and Regional Planning and Development Law, structural changes to buildings require approval from relevant

authorities.

However, what began as a government regulation over solar panel installation in the state-owned estates has spiralled into a fierce public debate regarding governance, taxation, housing failure and the limits of state control in a city battling deepening economic hardship.

Aside from condemning the government’s action, residents are calling for the scrapping of such a law as they view as commercialization of survival

For many Lagosians, the issue goes far beyond solar energy; they see it as another layer in what they describe as a growing system of levies, approvals and charges imposed on citizens who are already forced to provide basic amenities for themselves.

There is a belief in some quarters that while governments in developed societies subsidise renewable energy adoption, Lagosians are being asked to pay additional fees simply for attempting to escape darkness.

Not even the government clarification was able to assuage the people’s anger as tempers rose across the state, with many ready to confront the government authorities.

Many residents insist the policy is merely a “pilot phase” that could eventually extend to private estates and ordinary homeowners across the state. So, it is their thinking that if they don’t react now, it would be too late by the time the government would want to extend it to private house owners.

The worry in some quarters is why citizens who already provide their own electricity, water and security, would be required to pay the government for installing solar systems powered by sunlight; a natural gift to humanity.

A businessman, residing in one of the private estates in Amuwo Odofin area of Lagos, Anthony Osewele, lashed out at the state government, saying, “The state government has no right to sell God’s energy.”

“When people decide to arrogate to themselves the position of God, you wonder if they still had any iota of conscience in them.

“Nobody has the right to sell solar energy provided by God. We are talking about solar energy that is from the Sun; God free gift to humanity. The sun is the centre of the universe. So, for me, it is evil and the height of wickedness for anybody in authority to even conceive the idea of collecting money from citizens for using sunlight. That means one day, they will find a way of collecting money from citizens for breathing the air. This is condemnable in every form.

“In other climes, we are talking about the government providing electricity to their citizens 24 hours nonstop. But here the government provides darkness, making life hellish and short for the people.

“And when the people move to provide alternatives just to improve their lives, the government is here to add to their sorrow by taxing them for doing that. This is very bad,” he stated.

Also, corroborating Osewele’s position is a lawyer, Marcellus Onah, who stressed that residents are not embracing solar power as a luxury, but as a necessity forced on them by the collapse of public electricity supply.

“People are buying solar because the government has failed to provide stable electricity, which is the minimum any responsible government should provide.

“We provide water for ourselves. We generate electricity for ourselves. We fix roads around us. Despite all these, the government still wants to charge us for trying to survive. It is very bad and unacceptable,” he stated.

An estate agent, Rowland Adebayo also lamented that Lagosians are increasingly being suffocated by multiple taxes and levies without corresponding public services.

“They have introduced road parking fees. They demand tenement rates. Every day, there is one new levy or another.

“I don’t mind paying taxes if the government is doing the right thing.

“But asking people to pay for installing solar energy is criminal. It is like taxing sunlight, which is a free gift from God and we must resist it,” he stated.