Landlords homeless as Delta demolishes over 40 ‘illegal’ buildings in Asaba

The Delta State Government recently embarked on the demolition of illegal buildings said to be on government land in the Asaba metropolis of the state, displacing over 1,000 persons. MATTHEW OCHEI writes about the agony and lamentations of the affected residents

Several property owners wept profusely on Friday, June 21, 2024, as the Delta State Government task force on Land Recovery moved five caterpillars to Anwai Road and 74 Road areas near Government House, Asaba, to demolish over 40 buildings.

The landlords watched as caterpillars arrived suddenly when the residents were ill-prepared, forcing them to watch helplessly as the authorities destroyed their properties.

Hotels, schools, warehouses, several residential storey buildings, and other structures were pulled down, displacing residents and forcing landlords and tenants into homelessness.

The demolition began at 9 a.m. that Friday morning, when most residents had gone out for their businesses, amidst a heavy presence of security agencies, including the Army, Department of State Services, men of the Nigeria Police Force, and NSCDC.

Properties said to be worth billions of naira were destroyed.

Most of the occupants had gone to their usual business without removing any of their belongings, Saturday PUNCH correspondent learnt.

Some were called on the phone to return home but had no opportunity to remove even their clothes, especially those in the first four buildings demolished.

As sympathisers helped the victims pack some of their belongings onto the streets, looters were also busy looting properties.

Pain and agony filled the air, especially in Ogbueshi Juluga Avenue, where residents were said to have lived for the past 15 years.

Indeed, it is easier to destroy than to build, as the caterpillars brought down not less than 40 buildings within eight hours.

Land grabbing menace

Over the years, the activities of land grabbers in Delta state have led many landlords to an early grave, while others are either tenants or homeless.

The situation is usually unbelievable, thus causing the affected residents, especially owners of the demolished buildings, to develop heart attacks.

Mr. Israel Eje, the owner of one of the demolished hotels, Kobbiz Luxury Apartments and Hotel on Ogbueshi Juluga Avenue, lamented how the government deceived them.

“We have stayed in this place for the past 10 years. Nobody stopped us when we were building, nobody warned us that the land belonged to the government. I did a survey and there was no notice of enrollment to government land. As you can see, there are two fences here, one is government while one was erected by me. Before I came here, the government had already erected its fence. So, we bought the land from the community and there was no issue. All of a sudden, Oborevwori’s government came with a demolition notice on April 22, 2024.

“Some of us wrote to the government to tell them that we didn’t steal and that we were misled. We are law-abiding citizens of Nigeria; we worked hard to get these properties. Upon the letter, we were invited to a meeting at the government house. The Vice-Chancellor of Osadebay University, the state Attorney General, the Lands and Survey ministry, and the Urban Renewal ministry all attended the meeting summoned by the governor, who was represented by his Chief of Staff, Mr. Johnson Erijo.

“They said the land belongs to the government and since we have built and live here, they will not demolish and we were asked to regularize in the extension of one year. They told us that Ogbueshi Juluga Avenue is not included in the demolition. We all agreed to regularize, and our lawyer had written a letter for regularization as directed by the government and we were waiting for them to tell us what to pay for regularization. We were surprised to see them with caterpillars this morning demolishing over 40 houses.

“If you check, I didn’t remove anything from the house because as of yesterday (Thursday), I was in the Government House and they did not tell us that they were coming for demolition the next morning, Friday. If they had told us that our agreement at the meeting would not stand again, I would have removed valuable things.

“The government had assured us regularization and there was no further notice for demolition. Is it that the government deceived us and just wanted us to lose our property? We are from Delta State. I’m an Isoko man who worked hard to get these properties. I have two-storey buildings, a four-bedroom duplex where I’m staying, and a plaza in the front. A lot of property. How could I move my property from these buildings in less than 10 minutes?

“They asked me to move my car out of the compound, so I drove my car with my family out of the house. We couldn’t even remove our clothes because the caterpillar was already demolishing from the back.”

Eje described the action of the government as wicked and inhuman, saying that the government is using its power to oppress the citizens.

Also, a school proprietress and owner of the demolished school, Greatzee Academy, decried the ugly situation, saying that adequate notice was not given to them.

She said, “My school and church have been demolished. We were not given adequate notice. I have been here for 15 years. Over one hundred of my school children have been displaced. They took us unaware and brought caterpillars this morning while the pupils were in class and started demolishing them. My children were running around crying. We don’t have anywhere to go. They should have notified us so that we could get prepared and make provision for these children.

“The most painful aspect is that this is the third term. Where do we go? The government that is supposed to protect us is now displacing us. They brought a two-week notice in April and later said they had pardoned us and gave us an extension of one year to regularize. Suddenly, they brought caterpillars this morning and started demolishing buildings without further notice.”

A popular wine dealer in Asaba, Mikado, whose warehouse on Anwai Road was demolished, stated that he had two court injunctions served to the government not to demolish the building.

He wept profusely as he watched his warehouse, which he said took him over one year to build, being brought down in less than 20 minutes as he ran around to appeal to the task force to obey the court order.

“I have two court injunctions which we served to the government, restricting them from demolishing our building. The task force went ahead and demolished it. The matter is already in court. Everything was destroyed. We were trying to pack our drinks out of the warehouse, but because the caterpillars were already demolishing, we couldn’t do much. The property in the warehouse, drinks worth billions of naira, was all destroyed,” he cried.

All the buildings around that axis, opposite Dennis Osadebay University, including the B.I.G estate, were brought down.

Govt speaks

The Chairman of the Taskforce on Recovery of State Government Lands, Chief Frank Omare, said the exercise was in continuation of the demolition of illegal structures built on Dennis Osadebay University, Anwai-Asaba land around 74 Road.

Omare, who led other members of the state committee during the demolition exercise, vowed to go after the land grabbers who misled innocent citizens into buying government lands.

He said the property owners had enough notice since the last demolition at Musa Camp, Asaba, warning all illegal occupants on government lands across the state to urgently begin evacuating their valuables as the government was out to recover all lands belonging to it across the state.

He ruled out compensation for the property owners, saying that the demolished property owners ought to pay the government for the cost of demolition.

He said, “We are still in the Asaba axis. We will go to Warri, Ughelli, Isoko, Agbor, Patani, Ibusa, and other areas. We are coming to all those places because Governor Sheriff Oborevwori has directed that we recover all government lands across the state.

“From the beginning, various government agencies told them the land belonged to the government, but they refused. Since Kefas, Ibori, Uduaghan, Okowa, and now it’s Sheriff Oborevwori’s administration. We are looking for the land grabbers and those community leaders who have misinformed and misled the less privileged in this state. How can you sell government land?

“A lot of them have run away, but the government is coming after them because the suffering is too much as a result of the greed of some people. But we cannot fold our hands because the government is the government.

“It is not about Governor Sheriff Oborevwori or Chief Frank Omare but the defence of government policies. It is not targeted at anybody. They sold government land, and it is a crime. Go to Warri and see what is happening. How can people build on top of the road?

“Dear Deltans, ask well anywhere you are whether the property is on government land. Just remove your valuables because the government will soon get there.”

On allegations that the government had given the property owners a one-year extension, Omare said it was mere propaganda, mischief, and blackmail.

“Times are hard, and what the populace is going through, it is not the intention of the government to make them suffer, but the land grabbers who felt that they are community leaders and youths selling their lands, the government is coming after them.

“We tendered the government gazette and Certificate of Occupancy before the public, and you cannot have a counter Certificate of Occupancy. We are doing what is right as a government, and we are going to be very firm, and we won’t look at faces. There are people in government collaborating with the land grabbers, but we will also deal with them,” he said.

An estate developer, Mr Emmanuel Isichei, described the demolition as a demonstration of the deep insensitivity of the government to the current harsh economic realities in the country.

He said, “It is sad that the government could take such a step at a time when there is hardship in the country. I felt lightheaded seeing people’s shops and houses demolished without putting measures in place to alleviate their suffering.

“It is almost impossible not to think of this demolition as a case of the government wielding its coercive powers against the poor, marginalized, and most vulnerable citizens. This demolition is a demonstration of the deep insensitivity of the government to the current harsh economic realities in the country.”