ABEOKUTA — Residents of Feere and oniporogun communities in orile-mo under Obafemi Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State have appealed to the state government to halt the alleged allocation of portions of their ancestral land to Chinese investors, saying the development threatens their homes, properties and the future expansion of the communities.
The community members made the appeal during a protest at the disputed area, where they alleged that bulldozers and security personnel had been deployed to commence activities on portions of land already occupied and developed by residents.
Speaking during the protest, the Baale of Fere community in Orile-mo, Chief Okesola Adesegun Alani, said the community was not opposed to industrialisation or government development initiatives, but insisted that existing homes and developed portions of the community should be protected.
According to him, the community had been engaging the government since 2017 over the need for an extension of the village, but said the matter had yet to be resolved.
He explained that the community had also made efforts to provide basic infrastructure, including electricity, through communal contributions, while residents had acquired land and developed properties in the area.
Alani said, “We are not fighting government for development. We want the community to be developed; we want industries. But the industry we are bringing should not be at the expense of the community. We don’t have any place to go.”
The traditional ruler alleged that the community was not consulted before the recent allocation and expressed concern over the reported demolition of properties.
He said the community had more than enough land that could be considered for industrial development without displacing residents.
“Before any government can allocate, they have to contact the leader of the village, the Baale. None of us was contacted. They just came with police, caterpillars and other equipment and started bulldozing our land,” he alleged.
Alani appealed to Governor Dapo Abiodun to intervene, stressing that the community was not against investors but wanted a solution that would allow residents and industries to coexist.
“We are begging Governor Dapo Abiodun. I know he is an achiever and he is making progress, but please, Dapo and your government, remember us. We are human beings,” he said.
The Baale also said he had obtained traditional recognition from the Olu of Orileemo, the Ologbon of Imo and the Alake of Egbaland, describing himself as the recognised traditional head of the community.
Also speaking, the Acting Chairman of the Community Development Association (CDA) of Oniporogun and Feere communities, Salau Hamid, said residents were saddened by the development, particularly because many people had invested their savings in building houses in the area.
“It is saddening that we are trying, even though the economy is bad, to make sure that we have our buildings, and we found out that the Chinese are taking over. We don’t know how it came to play,” he said.
Hamid claimed that more than 300 residents had houses either completed or at various stages of construction and appealed to the government to consider their plight.
“We want development, yes, but this is not the kind of development we are looking at. We want to exist and co-exist with the Chinese, but they can always get properties elsewhere,” he said.
He urged the government to avoid demolishing residents’ properties, adding that many people had obtained documentation for their properties.
Another resident and landlord, Mr Ipadeola Afeez, described the situation as “very shameful” and alleged that some individuals were using the proposed Chinese investment as a means of taking over residents’ properties.
Afeez said residents had complied with government requirements by obtaining survey plans, ratification documents, assessments and, in some cases, Certificates of Occupancy.
“We don’t understand what has happened. We have done all the necessary documents that government said we should do,” he said.
He appealed to Governor Abiodun and the federal government to intervene before residents were displaced.
“Please and please, we are Nigerians. We have nowhere to go. We are appealing to the state government to come and rescue us from all these land grabbers,” Afeez said.
He further alleged that the proposed development covered parts of the community, including areas where some residents had buried their ancestors.
Meanwhile, a resident and businesswoman, Mrs Komaya Olajumoke Racheal, also appealed to the government to protect residents and their properties.
“Please consider us, government. Please, we are seeking for mercy. Nothing much. We are appealing to Governor Dapo Abiodun to help us secure our land,” she said.
The residents therefore called on the Ogun State Government to urgently engage traditional leaders, landlords, the CDA and other stakeholders in dialogue, saying a mutually acceptable solution could allow industrial development to proceed without displacing existing residents.
