Ogun lawmakers recommend prosecution of monarch over alleged land-grabbing

The Ogun State House of Assembly on Tuesday passed a resolution recommending the Olu of Obafemi, in Obafemi-Owode Local Government Area, Oba Taofeek Owolabi, for prosecution over alleged land grabbing.

The Assembly said its recommendation was in accordance with the provisions of the State Anti-land Grabbing Law, 2016 and other extant laws.

In the resolution, the lawmakers also directed the State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Oluwasina Ogungbade (SAN), to give effect to the resolution by immediately proceeding with Oba Owolabi’s prosecution.

They equally directed the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs and the State Council of Obas to immediately suspend the monarch for perpetrating acts capable of disrupting the peace of the residents of Agboro-Olatunde village and the people of the state at large.

The passage of the resolution followed the presentation of the report of the House Committees on Justice, Ethics and Public Petitions on the petitions received from Agboro-Olatunde Community Development Association against the monarch, as presented by the Vice Chairman of the Committee, Tella Babatunde.

Mr Babatunde thereafter moved for its adoption, before being seconded by Olusegun Kaka and supported by the whole House through a voice vote.

Consequently, the Majority Leader, Yusuf Sheriff, moved the motion converting the Committee’s recommendations into the House resolution, which was seconded by the Minority Leader, Lukman Adeleye, and supported by the whole House, through a unanimous voice vote.

The report partly reads: “In view of the allegations raised by the petitioners and the failure of the respondent to honour the invitation of the House on the issues raised by the petitioners, the Committee embarked on an on-the-spot assessment of the land in contention and observed as follows:

“That there is a land dispute between the residents of Agboro-Olatunde village and Oba Taofeek Kayode Owolabi (The Olu of Obafemi); the land in contention is located at Obafemi Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State; the monarch who was alleged of land grabbing brought in a developer to Agboro-Olatunde village, where over 30 hectares of land belonging to the residents of the village was cleared and cash crops amounting to millions of naira were destroyed by the respondent.”

“The monarch did not have either registered or non-registered title documents on the disputed land; and the action of the monarch is contrary to the Anti-land Grabbing Law, 2016 of Ogun State.”