BOLA BADMUS, SUBAIR MOHAMMED and LEKAN OLABULO write on the complex world of land grabbers.
IN Lagos State, land-grabbing activities of forceful entry, illegal occupation and possession of landed properties, mutilation and killing of innocent landowners are still manifesting across the five zones of Ikeja, Badagry, Ibeju Lekki, Lagos Island and Epe.
To put mildly, the ‘Ajagungbale’, as land-grabbers are known and referred to, are the mercies landowners daily seek after.
However, to tackle their nefarious activities, the state government through the state Special Taskforce on Land Grabbers under the Ministry of Justice recently organised a stakeholders’ meeting themed: Safeguarding Possessory Rights in Lands: The Role of Lagos State Special Taskforce on Land Grabbers.
The state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr Lawal Pedro, SAN, who spoke at the event, said as part of efforts to address the menace of land grabbing, the state government enacted a law prohibiting forceful entry and illegal occupation of landed properties, as well as violent and fraudulent conducts in relation to landed properties in the state.
Lamenting the negative impacts of the activities of land grabbers in the state, he said, “The menace of land grabbers has led to conflicts on lands in the state, resulting in destruction of properties and even loss of lives. It is a fact that property transactions in Lagos State have been greatly hindered by the activities of the Omo-Onile and Ajagungbale.”
The chief law officer of the state reiterated that the law on land grabbing that was enacted in 2016 still stands, regardless of anyone’s status in the society. He explained some of the provisions of the Lagos State Property Protection Law, 2016 and in particular, Section 2(1) of the Law, which prohibits the use of force or self-help by anyone to take over any landed property or engaging in any act, inconsistent with the proprietary rights of the owner of any landed property in Lagos.
We lost 80 hectares to them –Ibeju-Lekki family
Casting doubt on the workability and the effectiveness of the Lagos State Property Protection Law, 2016 and in particular, Section 2(1) of the Law as a legal instrument to curb the menace of land grabbing, a property owner in Ibeju-Lekki, Abdullahi Tanimowo, said the laws have failed in achieving the purposes for which they were enacted.
According to him, rather than clip the wings of the Ajagungbale, government and security agencies are alleged accomplices in the dangerous and inhuman acts of the land grabbers.
Tanimowo described the Ajagungbale as law unto themselves. He stated that they are unbreakable and unyielding to state laws and this is because they allegedly have the backing of the government and security agencies.
He recalled how his family forfeited 80 hectares out of the 100 hectares of the family land to the Ajagungbale.
He said, “We are landowners in Ibeju-Lekki. The family knew the land belonged to it because we grew up on that farmland. Apart from this, it was handed down to us by our forefathers. The land is about 100 hectares. There are three branches in our family that have right to the farmland.
“But trouble started when one out of the three branches wanted the entire land to itself. To achieve this, he sought the help of Ajagungbale but as fate would have it, they turned against him and ended up claiming a larger portion of the farmland.
“Out of these branches, my branch and one other branch are on the same page as to the ownership of the land but the other branch is hostile to every move made by the family.
“Trouble began when some people started intruding on the land. We made attempts to chase them out but they refused to leave. We decided to drag the intruders to court which he spearheaded. We believed that he initiated the court action on behalf of the three branches, not knowing that he instituted it, in his name. We attended court sessions without knowing that we were not joined in the case. We contributed money to push the case and by the time he got the judgment, he had only his name on it.
“He won many cases on the land with this dishonest means against the intruders. So, we decided to drag him to court for the court to pronounce that the farmland belongs to the three branches and not him as an individual and the court ruled in our favour. At this point, he decided to bring in the Ajagungbale to prevent us from entering the farmland.
“It was a terrible situation. In fact, in the process of carrying out the court judgment, two persons were killed.
“All our moves to gain access into the farmland were violently resisted. We, therefore, decided to penetrate the ranks of the Ajagungbale. This, we did successfully with a promise to give some portions of the farmland. Already, he had ceded almost 25 per cent of the entire hectares of land to the Ajagungbale before they agreed to work for him. So, we were left with 75 hectares of land out of which we promised them 25 per cent.
“By the time the whole issue was resolved, we had signed out 80 hectares of the farmland to the land grabbers. The three branches were left with just 20 hectares of land. They started selling the land before our very eyes while we watched helplessly. The Ajagungbale are cunning, dangerous and wicked. They cannot invade your property without leaving behind deadly footprints. They sold and made millions of naira from our land while we live in penury.
“But I must also add that they don’t just walk into your land. The greedy ones among the family invite them in. When you have a claim to a farmland and you call in the Ajagungbale, you are giving yourself a problem. People do that out of greed. They invite Ajagungbale to have sole ownership of the landed property. They do this to exclude other members of their family.
“The Ajagungbale also enforce court judgments and take possession of landed property.”
‘Three lawyers died in the course of our case’
Another victim, a 73-year-old retiree, Alhaji Suraju Ologunebi, said land grabbers invaded his community in Igbo Esinsin, Ologunebi village, Command in the Alimosho area of Lagos State about 35 years ago despite being restrained by a Lagos State High Court judgment, in a case presided over by a certain judge, from selling, buying and building on the disputed land.
The invasion, according to him, led to loss of property. While blaming the non-adherence of the Ajagungbale to court order for the loss, he expressed regret that property owners allowed themselves to be misled by land grabbers.
Narrating his ordeal, he said bailiffs and armed security men from the Lagos State High Court had weeks earlier, executed a court judgment which affected about 200 properties in the community.
Ologunebi, who claimed to have lost three lawyers and some members of his family to mysterious deaths while the legal battle lasted, said that his family had equally obtained Form O, which gave the ownership of the buildings on the large expanse of land to Ologunebi family.
He said: “It all began in 1989 when my family started a move to reclaim our family land from the judgment debtors through the court after all amicable means of settlement had failed.
“The judge gave an injunction restraining anybody from selling, buying and building on the disputed land, but the judgment debtors disregarded the court and misinformed the buyers who are now landlords there.
“But because we are law-abiding, we adhered to the order of the court and continued with our case. We got a favourable judgment in 2006 after Justice Atinuke Ipaye gave a judgment in our favour. The judgment debtors (Odo Alabe and Ajasa families) sought redress at the Appeal Court and in 2015. Again, the Appeal Court in a judgment also affirmed Ologunebi family as the original owners of the land.”
He added: “Shortly after the Appeal Court judgment was delivered in our favour, some landlords contacted us though our lawyer. I don’t know how they got to know about the cases because they were not involved.
“They expressed their willingness to cooperate with us and ratify their ownership of the land but surprisingly, they disappeared and aligned with the judgment debtors again, who approached the Supreme Court. Now the Supreme Court in a judgment in December 2022 struck out their appeal for incompetence.
“Now rather than doing the right thing, they resorted to blackmail. They accused me of using land grabbers in a case that my family won up to the Supreme Court.”
He explained further that, “The court, through the bailiffs and law enforcement agents, retrieved the possession of the land to my family after the High Court granted us possession and form O. We are in the process of taking physical possession of the land. I sold part of the land to Alhaji Owoeye and the family also engaged his services on the land. I implored the residents to contact their lawyers for clarification and enlightenment on the true position of the law on the Lagos community.”
Sanwo-Olu must stop land grabbing –Rights group
Meanwhile, following increasing cases of land grabbing activities in the state, a rights group, the Human Rights Action Watch (HRAW), has expressed concern over the menace.
The Executive Project Director of the group, Comrade Tunji Balogun, appealed to President Bola Tinubu, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, and security agencies to rise in defence of innocent citizens in the state, being oppressed and violently attacked by land grabbers.
He condemned the activities of one Saheed Mosadoluwa (Aka Ibile), whom he described as a notorious land grabber, saying he had continued to wreak havoc brazenly on Ibeju-Lekki and Epe axis of the state.
He added, “This is a call to President Bola Tinubu and the Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu to save the souls of property owners in the state from the Ajagungbale. The property owners have not only suffered and still counting losses, artisans and workers on sites within the Ibeju Lekki corridor have so many pathetic stories to tell of the havoc of these land grabbers.
“They have continued to act as if above the law of the land and under the protection of some security agencies at the detriment of the voiceless people. I am calling on the government and the security agencies to conduct full criminal investigation against land grabbers in the state and all state actors conniving with them, to wipe away tears from victims’ eyes.
“Some weeks ago, the land grabbers burnt down a property belonging to one Esther Otsabomie, while her workers were also whisked away to a police station in Epe. They were later transferred to Abuja. A middle aged bricklayer, Sodiq Kolapo, was equally shot and killed recently by the land grabbers, and his corpse was taken away. The wife of the deceased artisan is in sorrow with three children.
“If left unchecked, the atrocities of land grabber could snowball into act similar to terrorism in the nearest future if not swiftly managed. I therefore urge full investigation of all issues relating to the aforementioned crimes.
“Crimes including criminal trespass on properties, particularly the unlawful demolition of Mrs. Esther Otsabomhe’s property on Sunday 17th March, 2024, among others, must be investigated and the culprit brought to justice.”
Balogun called on Governor Sanwo-Olu to find a way of getting rid of the menace of land grabbers especially on the Lagos Island corridor of the state, positing that the mega city status the state is being worked into, cannot accommodate land grabbers and, therefore, the need for government to do something and on time too.
We’re on oath –Land grabber
A member of land grabbing syndicate in Alimosho area of Lagos State (name withheld) told Saturday Tribune that the operations of land grabbers in the state and elsewhere are guided by oath-taking.
He said he could not divulge how his team operates and the mode of operation, saying that doing so was tantamount to betraying his team lead.
He said, “Our operation as Ajagungbale is not as easy as it seems. We are not touts that collect tolls at building sites. No, we are far apart from touts. We don’t intrude in affairs we are not invited into. That is all I can tell you because I am on oath. Or do you want me to vomit blood and die?”
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