…may sue monarch over land grabbing activities
. Call for monarch’s removal over 500 acres of land
Seun Shotunde, Abeokuta
Residents of five communities in Ago-Iwoye, particularly elderly people have protested the alleged land grabbing activities involving over 500 acres of farmland by the Ebumawe of Ago-Iwoye, Oba Abdulrasaq Adesina Adenuga.
The residents drawn from communities Isamuro, Imosun, Igan, Awori, and Idode took to the road along the palace, at the weekend, accompanied by security personnel from the police and the Department of State Services (DSS) alleging that Oba Adenuga was acquiring their land under the guise of government consent.
The protester armed with placards with the inscriptions: ‘Stop threatening us with Juju, DSS and thugs’; ‘We are tired of Ebumawe land grabbing activities’; ‘Stop land grabs of our land, our lives!’ ‘OBA Rasak has turned Ago-Iwoye to slave camp’, to mention few, unanimously called for the removal of the traditional ruler.
They accused the traditional ruler of robbing them off their ancestral land mostly used for farming where crops like cocoa, rubber, palm trees, cola are planted to sustained their livelihood at old age, stressing that some of them borrowed loans to plant and had suffered stroke on hearing some of land had been sold by the monarch.
Speaking the Baale of Isamuro, Tirimisiyu Ogunkoya, lamented that Oba Adenuga was fond of encroaching on people’s farmland in the communities and destroyed their crops like cocoa, kola, Palm tree, before selling it out buyers under the guise of government acquisition of the land for companies.
Ogunkoya said that the monarch had taken over 500 acres of farmland of the people without regard for their consent and selling them off, stressing that the landowners had written several petitions to the state government, the police and DSS on the matter but all to no avail.
He said ” we are here protesting against the Ebumawe of Ago-Iwe who have encroach into over 500 acres of land belonging to five towns in Ago-Iwoye to sell them. So that is why people from these towns like Isamuro, Imposing, igan, Awori, Idode are protesting because he had sold some portion of the land and he is planning to sell more. He will be telling lies that the government want to use the land for airport, planning rubber and taking Michelin to Ago-Iwoye to manufacture tyre for us.
“We know he is telling lies because we have gone to the government and government did not owned up that they wanted our land. If the government want the land it is the agent of the government that will come to the land owners and negotiate before it is sold off. We have written several letters to government, to DSS, to police and no response and that is why are saying enough is enough.And we don’t want him as our king again.” he noted.
Another residents, Mr Emmanuel Olukayode, who accused the traditional ruler of allegedly encroaching his father’s 10 hectares farmland which he borrowed money from somebody to cultivate cocoa, cola and other crops on it to sustain his livelihood and pay instalmentally from his pension.
“We are tired of our traditional ruler, the Ebumawe of Ago-Iwe who intentionally went into my 10 hectares of land which is my father’s farm land. I plant cocoa,.kola, palm tree. I borrowed money from somebody to cultivate on this land. We want the state government to stop him from going to our land.” he said.
Also, a Professor from Taisolarin University of Education, Adeniyi Adefela called appealed to Governor Dapo Abiodun to prevail on the monarch to stop encroaching on their farmland, saying that if the the governor fail to do so, he would advise the protesters to challenge the monarch’s land grabbing activities at the court of law.
We are protesting the land grabbing activities of Oba Abdulrasaq Adesina Adenuga, the Ebumawe of Ago-Iwe. For Sure nobody will watch his land grabbed and keep quiet at least by now he should be have been summoned by the government to questions him on his land grabbing activities and stop. Some some of my colleagues in Isamuro acll already in court already. I will employ my fellow protester to also head to court if the government fails to respond.” he noted.
The Acting Village Head of Lagan, Dr. Segun Onasote, who lamented that the people of Ago-Iwoye are tired of the land grabbing activities of the monarch in the land, narrated how to OBA Adenuga came to Idode and asked the Village Head to give up some portion of land, appealing to Gov. Abiodun to take decisive steps in removing the king before the matter gets out of hands.
“The Ebumawe came to our village in Idode saying that the Baale of that village should see him in the palace askin hi to give up some portion of the land because he had sought permission on the land. He is a serial liar and land grabber, Governor Dapo Abiodun Should remove him and he should leave our land. We have a lawyer, we will head to court if he does not leave our land.” he added.
When contacted, Special Adviser to the Governor on Information and Strategy, Hon. Kayode Akinmade, as at the time of filling the is report said that he was at a meeting and he would get back.
