LAUTECH land: Give us compensation, we met all conditions, affected family begs Makinde

LAUTECH land: Give us compensation, we met all conditions, affected family begs Makinde

Khalid ABRAHAM

The Agunbiade family, Isale-Afon, Ogbomoso, has again appealed to the Oyo state government to pay compensation over its land acquired along with others’ for siting the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology LAUTECH Ogbomoso.

The family in a statement signed by the family’s spokesman, Engr Chief Adewole Adesina and made available to ogbomosoinsightonline.com, asserted the old Oyo government took over the land and those of others in about the year 1990 but that up till now, no compensation had been paid the families.

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LAUTECH: Landowners appeal to Oyo, Osun govts over payment of compensation

The family thus urged the Governor Seyi Makinde-led government to revisit the matter moreover when it paid compensation to the Osun state government with which it jointly owned the institution until 2020. The land of Agunbiade family affected according to the statement is 400 acres.

“The Agunbiade family of Isale-Afon, Ogbomoso, is again appealing to the Oyo State Government to re-visit the issue of compensation to families who own the lands taken over for LAUTECH. For the Agunbiade family of Isale-Afon Ogbomoso, 400 acres of our land is affected. It is an ancestral land left to us by our forebears. We appeal to our amiable Governor to pay the compensation before he leaves office and achieve what his predecessors could not.”

The family noted that Osun state received compensation to the tune of ₦8b over the dissolution of the joint-ownership, wondering why the families whose properties were taken over could not be compensated.

“Governor Seyi Makinde’s administration in 2020 received the report of the joint LAUTECH asset sharing committee. As at that time the total value of the assets was ₦100bn, for sitting assets in Ogbomoso.

”Osun State shared asset in LAUTECH sitting in Ogbomoso, it got ₦8b in compensation. And Governor Seyi Makinde from what we learnt had paid the Osun State Government their alloted share of asset in LAUTECH, Ogbomoso. So, why we land owners are yet to be compensated continues to shock us.”

Declaring the family is happy that LAUTECH has become one of the best universities in Nigeria it submitted that the Agunbiade family had met all conditions put forward by the Oyo state Ministry of Lands including land surveying, a formal request and list of all items on the land.

“The Oyo state Ministry of Lands is handling the matter but they are too slow in action so far or may be it is deliberate. We have done what they asked us to do. These included carrying out land survey undertaken by a registered surveyor which we did, submitting a formal request which we did and describing the items on the land which we also did. We have on our land, economic trees like, Gmelina, cashew, Iroko, mangoes etc and food crops such as cassava, yams etc. We also have hut houses and farms, which we can’t access again on the land. However, we are happy LAUTECH is a foremost university in Nigeria and Africa today.”

The family lamented that the university is presently not using their portion of the land but had denied them access to it though they were yet to receive any dime in compensation. It claimed this had also foreclosed receipt of rent from their tenants.

“LAUTECH authorities debarred our family from having access to the land claiming government had given them the land though without the family being given a single penny as compensation.

“Where in Nigeria does government take over ancestral land without compensation? At some point they said they wanted to receive other communities’ claims and treat together. We understand there are about 9 communities involved including the Olugbon family asking for compensation.

“But our argument is that why must we be bound by that! It does not behove us to wait for other owners to lay claims to their lands. What concerns us is ours and our claim is legitimate.”

The family emphasized they are being cheated over their patrimony arguing, “If Osun state could be paid compensation which includes value of land owned by others, why are land owners exempted? So we are seriously cheated, ditto the assets shared to Oyo state. Recall Osun people asked Gov Adeleke to account for the money GSM paid the state on LAUTECH’s assets shared to them in Ogbomoso. This confirms that GSM actually paid Osun state.”

The family claims its 400 acre land is worth ₦2b in value based on the 2020 estimate. “If we base it on the old valuation, considering that the Agunbiade family surveyed land is over 400 acres, compensation due to the Agunbiade family is in the region of ₦2b.”

Counting its losses, the family stressed, “Now, we have lost the land and our inheritance is gone forever. The unborn generations of our family cannot benefit an inheritance bequeathed by their forebears. Indeed the Agatu farmers and others who rented the land for farming for a period of over 100 years and who yearly pay tributes and royalties to our family have been driven away. Our aged parents no longer get farm produce from these farmers we leased the land to, the Agatus and others, to feed themselves any more. It is an humongous loss.”

They therefore pleaded with the Oyo state’s helmsman. “We are praying and pleading that GSM pay us our dues. Some of our family members are dead since we re-energised our request for compensation. Government should not let their efforts be in vain. We have been patience and humble in our request, the fact remains that our inheritance is gone forever, government should do well to reward us with compensation. God bless His Excellency Governor Oluseyi Abiodun Makinde.”