About 7, 000 residents of Ire-Akari Estate, Soka, Ibadan in Oluyole Local Government Area of Oyo state on Monday raised the alarm that they are under siege as hundreds of hoodlums stormed their homes, destroying property worth several millions of naira.
DAILY POST learnt that the families of Chief Emmanuel Ashamu, Chief Femi Majekodumi, Oyenike Ogunsola and late Ganiyu Bello secured a Supreme Court judgment ceding part of the 30-year-old estate to them about two months ago.
About 250 houses in the estate, it was gathered, were affected by the Supreme Court judgment.
But landlords in the estate, who opted for amicable settlement, declared that over 85 per cent of the affected property were sold to them by the families that secured the judgment.
Many house owners including the National President, Nigeria Union of Journalists, Mr. Waheed Odusile and Vice Chancellor of Technical University, Ibadan, Professor Ayobami Salami have their homes deserted.
A Director in the Ibarapa Local Government Town Planning Department, 54-year-old Funsho Adeniran, and & 74-year-old Grace Adefunke Ojo were said to have collapsed and died after their buildings were padlocked immediately the occupants have been sacked by the hoodlums.
The rampaging hoodlums, who were alleged to be acting on the orders of a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain, Chief Femi Majekodumi and Chief Emmanuel Ashamu, have demolished several properties as well as used padlock and chains to lock houses belonging to residents of the estate.
The hoodlums and their principals were alleged to have defied the orders of the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Saliu Akanmu Adetunji to vacate the estate. The hoodlums, it was gathered, had threatened to attack the Olubadan’s Palace guards, who came to the estate to deliver the monarch’s message.
This was after landlords in the estate protested to the Popoyemoja, Ibadan palace of the Olubadan, calling on on him to intervene in the crisis which engulfed the estate.
Chairman, Ire-Akari Estate Landlord Association, Engineer Adetunji Adelani, while speaking with journalists on Monday, said hundreds of residents have fled the estate in fear of attack, while cases of looting and armed robbery were then common-place.
Adelani, while calling on the state Governor, Abiola Ajimobi and the Commissioner of Police to provide adequate security in the area, said, “As am talking to you now security has collapsed in the estate and our lives are no longer save.
“Since we heard of the judgment, we have been engaging the agents in peace meeting. At the end they insisted on execution of the judgment, except the families of Ganiyu Bello who told us through their lawyer that they do not give anybody the power of attorney and that they are not interested in the execution of the judgment.
“The agents came to the estate on June 13,2018 with about 20 policemen and dozens of thugs and started to lock houses with chains and padlock after we have agreed to pay N200,000 per each building. Despite the fact that some landlords have started paying the agreed fee , the hoodlums went ahead to demolish their property.”
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