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An appeal has gone out to the Inspector -General of Police (IGP) and Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State to as a matter of urgency call some land grabbers who have invaded the family land of Patako Compound located at Ido Local Government Area of Oyo State.
The Mogaji of Ile Patako, Sharafadeen Alao a.k.a (Oba Skibo Layeye), who made this appeal on Thursday, also called on the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 2 Division, Odogbo, Ojoo, Ibadan, to call his men to order as they are being used to threaten members of the family whenever they visit the land.
Mogaji Sharafadeen Alao explained that when the family discovered that some landgrabbers had invaded my family land, he reported the matter at OC Monitoring office at the Oyo State Police Headquarters, Eleyele,
Ibadan.
He further explained that: “The police swung into action and visited the land where they met a bulldozer. Police took away the bulldozer and asked the leader of the land grabbers to come to Eleyele with their evidence of ownership of the land.
“Instead of the land grabbers to follow police instructions, what we saw next was that they came in hundreds with dangerous weapons and stationed themselves on the land, boasting that if anyone is sure of himself, such person should endeavour to come to the land to claim ownership. They brought in cultists to destabilize the whole place.
“Instead of the land grabbers to show at the OC Monitoring’s office, it’s the owner of the bulldozer and the driver that showed up and they came begging and at the end of the day, the bulldozer was released to them.
“When the land grabbers were not forthcoming, we had to write a petition to OC Monitoring at Abuja. We were invited and we went there, but unfortunately the land grabbers didn’t show up.
“We sued them to court. But unfortunately today, what we saw was that some soldiers from Ido Division were seen stationed on the land. What I know is that the duties of soldiers is to defend the country and protect its territory, not to be stationed on people’s land. What they told us was that their superior gave them the order to guard the land.
“As a result of this, I am calling on the Governor of Oyo State, Engr. Seyi Makinde, the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Owolabi Olakunlehin and the IGP, Egbetokun to caution these land grabbers.
“The soldiers threatened to kill us whenever we try to come back to the land. The soldiers were shooting indiscriminately. They also threatened us that they will kill someone and drop the dead body on the land and claim that we did it.
“The soldiers are helping to shield the land grabbers to do corner piece on the land despite the fact that there is still a pending court case on the land in question. They even claimed that they will kill me if I ever venture to come to the land.
“I am only following the rule of law if not so I would have shown them the type of person I am but as a law abiding citizen that’s why I am calling on the authorities to call them to order.
“I can’t imagine when soldiers have now become a weapon of oppression in the hands of landgrabbers. Am appelealing to the GOC 2 Division to come to our rescue as we can no longer visit my family land as a result of his men that are stationed on the land.
“Some of the boys that came along with the land grabbers claimed to be Sunday Igboho’s boys. I want to state categorically that Sunday Igboho is not a thug and he doesn’t support hooliganism and as a result, they’re only trying to tarnish his image. We learnt that they are from one Tunde”.
