The House of Representatives has began the process of investigating the allegation of destruction of homes and properties at Amuwo Odofin Federal Constituency, Lagos State by Naval Officers.
The House consequently resolved to set up an Ad-hoc Committee to find out the remote and immediate causes of the mayhem in order to provide remedy for the problem and compensate the people who were displaced.
This resolution followed the adoption of a motion on: ‘Need to Investigate the Destruction of Homes and Properties at Amuwo Odofin Federal Constituency, Lagos State by Naval Officers’, moved by Oghene Egoh (PDP, Lagos).
While presenting the motion, Egoh said on 15 January 2020, there were unprecedented attacks which led to the destruction properties in the above areas that where orchestrated by unknown persons wearing Naval uniforms.
Egoh said the people that carried out the ejection and the destruction of the properties claimed that it was due to illegal oil bunkering activities being carried out in the affected communities.
He observes that even if there were illegal oil bunkering activities in the areas, it was not everybody in the communities that was involved and therefore, it was not fair that the whole communities were punished for the offences of a few unruly hoodlums in the areas.
The lawmaker lamented that the displaced persons of the communities numbering over ten thousand women, children, men, Obas and Baales are stranded without being paid any compensation.
According to him, “the people of Abule Glass, Abule Elekpa, Bobukoji, Idimangoro, Babakati, Kopime, Akaraba, Inagbe, Abule Kamoru, Abule Alfa, Sokoto, Laje, Sopo beach, Kobena beach and lishe beach are indigenous communities and residents of the area in Amuwo Odofin Federal Constituency, Lagos State who have lived together for over three hundred years.
“The residents of those communities in the riverine areas of Amuwo Odofin, Lagos State woke up to see bulldozers and caterpillars, fully protected by people in Navy uniform, storming the areas and destroying houses and properties of those indigenous communities that have Traditional Rulers and Baales.
“No notice whatsoever was given to them, as they were taken unawares, and could not salvage any of their properties before they were crushed into rubbles and they were then sent out of their lands”.
James Kwen, Abuja
