When Politics Stands Between Safety by Femi Da-silva

Across Africa’s fastest-growing cities, high-rise buildings are redefining skylines from Nairobi to Accra, Johannesburg to Lagos. But alongside this growth is a dangerous pattern: safety enforcement often weakens when political interests are involved.

Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial capital, offers a clear case study of how political influence can stand between safety regulations and public protection.

The Reality Across African Cities
Many unsafe high-rise buildings across Africa are not informal structures. They are:

• Premium developments
• Commercial towers
• Politically connected properties

This reality creates a silent enforcement problem. Regulators may identify fire safety gaps, structural risks, or evacuation failures but enforcement becomes difficult when owners are politically exposed or influential.

The result is selective compliance, and the public is left vulnerable.

Lagos as a Case Study: When Warnings Were Ignored

Lagos has experienced several documented safety incidents that reflect this challenge:

• High-rise fires in commercial districts where reports later confirmed non-functional fire alarms, lack of extinguishers, and blocked escape routes
• Market and industrial fires linked to ignored safety notices, expired equipment, and poor emergency planning
• Building collapses where prior warnings were issued, but construction continued until disaster struck

In many of these cases, investigations revealed a familiar pattern:
regulatory lapses, delayed enforcement, and influence overriding safety decisions.

No names are required. The outcomes speak for themselves.

Why High-Rise Safety Failures Are So Dangerous

• High-rise buildings multiply risk:
• Fire spreads vertically and rapidly
• Evacuation becomes complex
• Emergency response time is critical
• Hundreds of lives can be affected at once

When such buildings operate without proper fire detection systems, drills, or certified safety management, they become urban hazards not symbols of progress.

The African Safety Paradox
Across Africa, governments invest heavily in infrastructure and urban development, yet safety governance often lags behind political and economic interests.

This creates a paradox:

• Strong safety laws on paper
• Weak enforcement in practice

When safety officers fear political backlash, enforcement stalls and disasters become predictable, not accidental.

Safety Is Not Anti-Development
Strong safety enforcement does not slow development.
It protects investment, lives, and public trust.

Cities that enforce safety equally regardless of ownership build confidence, resilience, and long-term growth.

The Way Forward for Lagos and Africa

To protect public safety, African cities must:

• Enforce safety laws without political exception
• Make high-rise safety compliance transparent
• Protect regulators from interference
• Treat fire safety and HSE as governance priorities

Final Thought
When politics stands between safety and enforcement, the public pays the price.

Lagos and Africa at large does not lack regulations. What is needed is political will to ensure that no building, no investor, and no individual is above public safety.

Safety is not a technical issue

It is a leadership decision.

Prevent the Preventable.

Mr. Femi Da-silva serves as the Chief Executive Officer of HSENations, the organization responsible for AfriSAFE, a leading forum for safety discussions and awards. Additionally, he functions as an event consultant for the Lagos International Fire Safety Conference and various other prominent safety, maritime, and offshore events.

ALSO READ: The Future of OHS in Africa: 3 Emerging Trends Every Safety Professional Must Master in 2026