metro
Police, hoodlums demolish 50 Lagos buildings, victims protest
LANDLORDS and residents of Oluwa Palace community, in the Ibeju Lekki Local Government Area of Lagos State, have accused policemen of the Lagos State Environment and Special Offences Enforcement Unit and hoodlums of demolishing their houses and rendering them homeless.
PUNCH Metro gathered that the hoodlums alongside the policemen stormed the community with bulldozers and destroyed over 50 structures, including houses, shops, among other property worth millions of naira.
The residents, while lamenting over the invasion, said they were not issued a notice for the demolition, adding that people who lost their property had been traumatised over the development.
A resident in the community, Olawale Yusuf, said his uncle’s property was part of the demolished property, adding that over N300m was expended on the property.
He said, “The property has 72 rooms and it belongs to my uncle. We have spent over N300m on it. We still have some property inside and could not bring them out during the demolition.
“We have not been able to bring the property out after the demolition. My uncle is not in good condition right now. We made our verification before building on this land.”
A property owner, Monday Ajanubor, said he was on a sick bed during the demolition exercise, adding that he was making plans to move into his new house when the demolition occurred.
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He said, “Because my rent was about to expire, I was doing everything possible to ensure that I move into my new house on this land. I sold my cars to put the house in order. Now they called me to say that the house I spent all my life savings on has been demolished.”
The head of the community, Nurudeen Oluwa, said the court had issued a warrant of possession to his family following a legal tussle between the family and the state government over the land.
He said, “We took the state government to court in 2009 when it attempted to take over the land. We knew then that there was no way to lawfully challenge the government other than going to court.
“In 2018, the court delivered judgment in our favour, and the judgment was registered at Alausa. Before we moved into the land, they gave us a certificate of warrant of possession. We have been living here since 2018, and members of the family also built their houses here, until the invasion on Thursday.”
The family’s lawyer, Ademola Olowoyeye, said the Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Lands Bureau, Bode Agoro, had frustrated the efforts of the family to enjoy the benefits of the court order.
He said, “Agoro directed the ministry of physical planning not to accept the registration of building permits, including the making of the fence. Several applications have been lying at the LASBCA office which they refused to treat.
“We wrote to the Attorney General of the state to ensure that the judgment was duly obeyed. He constituted a committee and made Bode Agoro the chairman of the committee. From the first day that we had those meetings, Agoro never betrayed his bias against the Oluwa family.
“When we asked him what he wanted, he said he would give the family 58 hectares out of 300 hectares and we felt that was not right. The last time we held a meeting was November last year, and because of his attitude, my client felt we should sue him and the Attorney General.”
A copy of the judgement delivered on January 15, 2018, was made available to our correspondent.
Contacted, the state Commissioner for Information, Gbenga Omotosho, said, “I am not aware of the incident. If you can get me the court order, I will look into it and get back to you”
The spokesperson for the taskforce, Gbadeyan Abdulraheem, when contacted, said the claims of the protesters were untrue.
He said, “We were at Abijo to give an executive back up to the land grabbers’ commission and not to demolish houses. This was contained in our press release.”
metro
BREAKING: Court acquits Ex-AGF Adoke
BREAKING: Court acquits Ex-AGF Adoke
A former Attorney-General of the Federation, Mohammed Bello Adoke, has been acquitted of money laundering charges by an Abuja Federal High Court.
Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court, Abuja, upheld Adoke’s “no case” submission against the money laundering charges.
In 2017, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) charged Adoke and Abubakar Aliyu, a property developer, with laundering about N300 million.
While the EFCC acknowledged before Ekwo that it was a mortgage taken by Adoke from Unity Bank, it alleged before Justice Kutigi that the money constituted a bribe from the sale of an oil block by Malabu Oil & Gas Ltd in 2011.
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On March 28, 2024, Kutigi dismissed the charges against Adoke and others, citing contradictions and criticizing the EFCC for a four-year trial.
Justice Ekwo, on Friday, ruled that the EFCC failed to provide evidence to prove the essential elements of the offence against Adoke, acquitting him of the charges.
However, Ekwo mandated Aliyu, the second defendant, to open his defence, stating that he has a case to answer.
BREAKING: Court acquits Ex-AGF Adoke
metro
Army releases Delta traditional ruler detained over slain 17 soldiers
Army releases Delta traditional ruler detained over slain 17 soldiers
The Nigerian Army has released a Delta State traditional ruler, Clement Ikolo, arrested over the murder of 17 soldiers in Okuama community.
He was released on Friday during a briefing by the Director of the Army Public Relations, Onyema Nwachukwu.
metro
BREAKING: Tension in Benue as riot police take over APC secretariat
BREAKING: Tension in Benue as riot police take over APC secretariat
Anti-riot Police forces have assumed control of the All Progressive Congress (APC) Secretariat led by Comrade Austin Agade in Makurdi, the capital of Benue state.
This marks the second instance within a month. It’s noteworthy that Makurdi hosts two separate APC secretariats, with Agada heading one and Benjamin Omakolo overseeing the other.
The Agada-led APC State Working Committee (SWC) had scheduled the inauguration of members of the zoning committee for the upcoming council elections at their Secretariat on Friday the 19th.
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In a pre-emptive move, anti-riot police trucks arrived as early as 6 a.m., barricading all routes leading to the Secretariat.
At present, the situation is chaotic, with motorcycle riders, suspected to be aligned with the Benjamin Omakolo-led APC State Working Committee, occupying the area. Chief Of Staff Paul Biam has characterized this faction as the authentic APC.
Governor Hyacient Alia previously issued a ban on all political activities and public gatherings in Benue State, and it appears this directive remains in force.
BREAKING: Tension in Benue as riot police take over APC secretariat
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