Communities appeal to Amosun over demolition of houses

Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun

 

Residents of some estate in Pakoto area of Ifo Local Government Area, Ogun State, on Thursday, appealed to the state government to stop the demolition of houses in the communities. In separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria in Ifo, residents of the affected estates urged Governor Ibikunle Amosun to invite them for a meeting to resolve issues arising from the demolition exercise.

 

NAN reports that the estates include Pacific, Anuoluwapo, Ikeoluwa and God’s Own. They belong to the Community Development Association of Ifo Local Government Area. More than 100 houses have been reportedly demolished in the estates. The Chairman of Ifo Local Government Council, Mr. Solomon Ogunrinde, told NAN that the demolished houses were on a land acquired by the Lagos University Teaching Hospital in 1979 to build a hospital.

 

Ogunrinde said that a Memorandum of Understanding on the land was signed in 2010 by the traditional rulers of the communities and the management of LUTH. He said that out of 2,045 hectares of land, 1,000 were given to the state, 750 to the communities and 250 to LUTH. The chairman said that the residents were surprised to see government tractors on December 31, 2013 demolishing their houses.

 

He said that the residents had made fruitless representations to the Ministry of Lands, Ogun State to resolve the issue.

 

“We are not fighting the government, but are appealing to it to assist us to ameliorate the sufferings of the people,” he said. The Chairman of Anuoluwapo Estate, Mr. Peter Odeh, whose house was demolished, appealed to the government to protect the residents’ property instead of destroying them.

 

The traditional ruler of Pakoto, Mr. Ola Fabowale, told NAN that the demolition had rendered many of the residents homeless.

 

“There should be compensations for the people whose houses have been demolished,” he said. However, the Commissioner for Urban and Physical Planning, Mr. Gbenga Otenuga, has said that the demolition was to pave way for the construction of a Federal Government-owned medical facility for which the lands had earlier been allocated, which was why it was necessary.

 

Otenuga said this at the inspection of the demolition where the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Mr Abiodun Adewolu, represented him.

 

By Punch