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Ota Chief defies police, court on land acquisition
Journalists in The Sun Publishing Ltd, whose lands have been unjustly confiscated by leaders in Arobieye community, Ado Odo Ota Local Government Area of Ogun State, have accused the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) of failing to act on their petition against former president of The Sun Cooperative,
Mr. Nkem Nwokocha.
The journalists also accused the community leaders, Sulaimon Oke and Nurudeen Dada of defying the police and court orders by their continued sale of the lands and encouraging building on the property.
The journalists had earlier this year charged the Ogun State Government to call the community leaders to order over encroachment on their lands.
They also called on the Olota of Ota, Oba Adeyemi Abdul-Kabir Obalanlege, to prevail on the Baale of Arobieye community, Nurudeen Dada, to stop re-selling their lands.
The journalists had submitted a letter dated March 30, 2024, titled: “Petition Against Mrs Nkem Nwokocha, former President of The Sun Cooperative Society Nigeria Limited” to the EFCC Area Commander in Lagos.
They claimed that despite visiting the office of the anti-graft agency over three times, the EFCC has failed to act on their petition while they continue to suffer injustice in the hands of the land grabbers.
In the petition, the journalists had drawn the attention of the EFCC to how Mrs Nwokocha, former president of the Cooperative, bought the 18 plots of land 13 years ago from the then head of Akanni family, the late Chief Jacob Akanni, who issued her with a receipt in the presence of some of her executives.
Members of the Cooperative were made to pay N400,000 each for a plot of land, which was almost thrice the cost of a plot of land in the community at that time.
“We also paid an additional cost of N243,750 for clearing and fencing of Sango land which she never did,” the journalists stated in the petition.
They also noted that those who have lands in Sango Ota were given Survey and Deed of Assignment by Ogun State Government, which enabled some of them to move to site to commence building, while some used theirs for farming or erected some corner pieces as landmarks on the lands.
In the letter, the journalists said despite the fact that the former president left The Sun over a decade ago, she has continued to sell parts of the lands, both in Sango and Mowe, belonging to members of the cooperative as she held on to the receipts and some other documents.
The journalists claimed that she has been conniving with the community leaders to sell the plots of land and encouraging the buyers to continue building on them.
The journalists also explained that the Police in Sango Ota, where they raised a similar petition, was able to establish that the land belonged to them after seeing all the documents from the Ogun State Government.
One of the community leaders, Sulaimon Oke, however, took the case to court, but while the matter was pending, the journalists said the police warned that the status quo should be maintained.
“But unfortunately, they have continued to sell our lands and are even building on them. We would have commenced work on our land but as law-abiding citizens we decided to respect the court, but we are being cheated everyday with serious threats to our lives,” the journalists lamented.
They also accused some Ogun State officials in the Lands and Planning Ministry of issuing fresh land and building approval on a land under litigation.
The journalists called for investigation into the said “Approval No GPDPA | IY24 | R | C1 | 27” which surfaced after the grabbers had taken the case to court.
“We are calling on the Surveyor General of Lands in Ogun State and Commissioner of Planning and Permanent Secretary to investigate this new approval for a building in a case in the Court of jurisdiction in Ota, Ogun State. We believe that Nigeria is not a country of injustice, there must be respect for the rule of law.
“The community leaders cannot be above the law of Nigeria, hence should be called to order and made to face the full wrath of the law as their act amounts to contempt of court,” the journalists pleaded.
They equally charged the EFCC to arrest and investigate Mrs. Nkem Nwokocha, who, they claimed, has continued to visit the site clandestinely while holding on to some of the documents of the property which she has been “using to support the land grabbers in their atrocities.”
