The people of Okere Urhobo kingdom in Warri South Local Government Area of Delta State have opposed the sale of the community’s land on Airport Road, Warri by some alleged associates of top government officials, saying if the government can longer continue with its development, the land should be returned to them.
In a peaceful protest on Airport Road, they stated that if the Delta State government did not want to site projects on the remaining expanse of land acquired by the defunct Bendel State government, it should return the land to Okere Urhobo kingdom.
The protesters carried placards with different inscriptions such as “Okere Urhobo people are peace-loving, but we are not stupid,” “Stop using our hungry brothers to sell their future and that of their children,” “Land grabbers should not drag former Governor Ifeanyi Okowa’s name into the mud, land grabbing is a crime, among others, who said they won’t tolerate this any longer.”
Speaking to journalists during the protest, the former president of Okere Urhobo Youth Community (OUYC), Warri, Comrade Festus Ofesiri Igherebuo, said the land in question has been there for so many years.
He said the land was earlier acquired by the defunct Bendel State government under the leadership of Governor Samuel Ogbemudia, to site Bendel Specialist Hospital, adding that “after Ogbemudia’s administration, the place had been abandoned.
“In the administration of Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, he transferred the land from Ministry of Health to Ministry of Transport and sited a park where banks and others would be built; the park ought to be an ultramodern one, but till date, there are still government’s structures, including the ones Ogbemudia and former Governor Uduaghan built.”
He said, recently, they saw new buildings emerged with the hope that perhaps, it was the government that wanted to complete the projects, adding that to their dismay, they discovered that it was unknown persons that were selling the land to themselves.
“All we are saying is that if the government does not want to use the land for the purpose it was acquired, it should be returned to us.
“It is an obvious fact that some of our brothers are involved in the land grabbing issues.
“We will be happy and waiting for the government to continue with the meaningful projects on the land and not to share the land among themselves. Such projects will enable our people to have gainful employment,” Igherebuo said.
He, however, warned that if the government fails to listen to the people this time, they will go to court to seek redress as their gentility should not be taken for stupidity.
On his part, Igho Okumagba said the land was acquired for a particular purpose and if the government is not willing to use the land for the purpose for which it was acquired, it should return it to the kingdom, adding that Okere-Urhobo people will not tolerate anything other than that.
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