Residents challenge Lagos government over solar tax

Recently, a viral video on social media showed officials from the Lagos State Ministry of Housing confronting a resident about solar panels installed on his home, sparking anger among residents of the state.

The footage captured members of the ministry’s monitoring and compliance unit asking the resident to obtain approval and pay a fee before proceeding with the installation.

In response, the state government 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 elsewhere in the state.

The reaction has been mixed. Some residents are upset that the government is imposing taxes instead of supporting citizens who are stepping in to fill a gap. Others warn that such requirements could discourage the adoption of renewable energy in a country that continues to experience power outages. They argue that the state government is effectively keeping its citizens in darkness and depression.

In an X post, Wale Ajetunmobi, senior special assistant on media to Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo‑Olu, said the resident had misunderstood the policy. “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.

Ajetunmobi explained that only residents living in government‑owned social housing estates are charged administrative fees for alterations, including the installation of solar power systems. He said the requirement is linked to the government’s role as facility manager of the estates, noting that solar installations are treated as structural alterations 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.”

Ajetunmobi 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 and that the resident had not obtained prior approval before starting the installation.

He noted that the government has 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,” he said. “The simple rule for any estate occupant is to contact the state government (facility manager) for approval for any external alteration.”

Ajetunmobi said 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.

What began as a regulation on solar panel installation in state‑owned estates has turned into a public debate about governance, taxation, housing policy and the limits of state control in a city facing economic hardship.

Residents are calling for the scrapping of the law, which they view as a commercialization of survival. For many Lagosians, the issue extends beyond solar energy; they see it as another layer in a growing system of levies, approvals and charges imposed on citizens who already provide basic amenities for themselves.

Some believe that while governments in developed societies subsidise renewable energy adoption, Lagosians are being asked to pay additional fees simply for trying to escape darkness. The government’s clarification has not calmed the anger, and tempers have risen across the state, with many ready to confront authorities.

Many residents say the policy is merely a “pilot phase” that could eventually extend to private estates and ordinary homeowners. They fear that if they do not react now, it will be too late when the government expands the policy to private house owners.

A businessman from a private estate in Amuwo Odofin, Anthony Osewele, criticised the state government, saying, “The state government has no right to sell God’s energy.” He added, “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’s free gift to humanity. The sun is the centre of the universe. 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.” He continued, “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.”

Lawyer Marcellus Onah echoed Osewele’s position, stressing 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 said.

Estate agent Rowland Adebayo 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 said.