Family petitions Amosun over forceful eviction by a land grabber

PM News reports that a family in Ogun State, Southwest Nigeria has petitioned Governor Ibikunle Amosun over an alleged forceful eviction from its expanse of land by a popular land grabber in the area.

The family, Owuyo Elemuren, claimed that from time immemorial according to the native law and customs, was the owner of the large expanse of land at Igbosoro Elemuren Village, Ogijo, Ogun State.

The petition to the governor was made on July 17, 2017. The petition had it that family members had been forcefully evicted from the land by one Mr. Kamorudeen Lamina, popularly known as Sir K. Oluwo.

Oluwo is currently being prosecuted in court by the Lagos State Government for allegedly taken over people’s land forcefully in Ikorodu area.

In the petition addressed to the head of the Ogun State Special Task Force on Anti-Land Grabbing, Taiwo Adeoluwa, copied to Governor Ibikunle Amosun, the family is seeking the enforcement of the provisions of the anti-land grabbing law signed by the governor last year, by ensuring that Lamina, his agents and/or representatives vacate the land forthwith.

The petitioners, Prince Nurudeen Adeyeri, Prince Kehinde Ojulari and Alhaji Segun Alogba, revealed that Mr. Lamina and his agents were spotted on the family land sometime in 2012, and claimed to have been assigned 60 acres of land from some unauthorized members of the family.

He was said to have been invited to a meeting with the Executive Committee of the family. At the meeting, documents were shown to prove that those he purportedly got the land from had no stake or authority to assign family land.

“They are the youth of the family, who had since 2006 been assigned two acres of land with an undertaken never to foment any trouble on family land. They have since sold the two acres assigned to them by the family.

“Mr. Lamina reportedly confessed to the elders at the meeting that he was invited by the youth to provide security protection for them, and ensure that the elders are driven out of the land. As a compensation for the illegal security assignment, he was assigned 60 acres. However, the Executive Committee members at the meeting were alarmed when Mr. Lamina showed the agreement purportedly signed by the misguided youth with him.

“In the said agreement, Mr. Lamina claimed to have paid N30 million for the 60 acres. He was unable to present Family Deed of Assignment or Conveyance and therefore told to vacate the family land. Rather than take heed, he moved into the land to forcefully take possession. This led elders of the family, including the Baale of the village, Baale Adegboyega Lawrence Adeyeri, to flee the village for their lives since 2012,” the petition issued by Lanre Anjolaiya, Public Relations Officer for the family said.

The petition said the family is poised to take full advantage of the new law against land grabbing in the stat to reclaim back its land.

“As the Baale also prepares to return to his domain, the family prays for government’s urgent intervention, keeping in mind the violent nature and antics of land grabbers; who in their desperate bids to grab other people’s land would unleash mayhem on the land and thereafter cause fictitious petitions to be written to the Police or government agencies,” the petition said.