Six Communities from ancestral Irasusi family in Sagamu town of Ogun State, have filed a suit against Governor Ibikunle and three other defendants over alleged illegal take over and sale of their farmland without adequate compensation to the original owners.
The claimants led by Babatunde Mabawonku had through their counsel, Ade Adeoye filed the suit with number Hsc/215/14 at High Court, Sagamu on 30th October, 2014 and also joined in the suit as defendants include, Attorney General of Ogun State, Teju Industries Limited and Spring fields Agro-Allied Limited.
The claimants communities include: Melufen, Farati, Ateri, Rasusi, Olowu and Erejigon, adding that their late father was the progenitor of Irasusi family who owns the parcel of land of 250.165 hectares and it’s sketch out in survey sketch plan number OG/1286/2012/30 which consists of all the six communities and located along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, at Sagamu Interchange axis.
The plaintiffs in the suit said that they were surprised that, on 16th June, 2014 the representatives and officers of the 1st-4th defendants moved onto a part of the land in dispute with bulldozers and commenced clearing of the land, and that the first defendant, who is the Governor did not serve a notice of acquisition of the land on the claimants.
Similarly, in the claimant’s witness statement on oath further said; that our said solicitors submitted survey sketch plan number OG/1286/2012/30 of the land in dispute to the Ogun State Bureau of Lands and Survey for charting and requested for a charting information certificate from the Bureau
That the 1st defendant did not serve a notice of acquisition of the land in dispute on the claimants. That the Ogun State Government did not pay any compensation to the claimants.
That it is the claimants family entire parcel of land, together with our villages, primary school attended by our children, farms, with cash crops and economic trees, polling unit and religious sites of great antiquities that the 1st defendant has purportedly compulsorily acquired.
That the claimants and all others whose live depend on the land in dispute have no other place to live and settle as we do not have land at any other place.
That the 1st defendant had commenced the sale of the land in dispute to private investors-the 3rd and 4th defendants inclusive, at several millions of naira.
That the 1st defendant sold 10 hectares of land out of the land in dispute to the 4th defendant for the sum of N130,922,000.00. That the 1st defendant also issued a Certificate of Occupancy to the 4th defendant for the portion of the land in dispute sold by the 1st defendant to the 4th defendant
Meanwhile, other claimants in the suit are: Pa Olanrewaju Sodipe, Efuwape Akinrinola, Madam Folake Efuleye, Hon. Nurudeen Odudele, Evangelist Oladapo Ogunlowo, Chief Adebayo Ayinla, Prince Lasisi Akinsanya and Pa Solomon Okinrinde.