The Ekiti State Government has warned some landowners in Ado and Iyin Ekiti against bloodshed over their persistent fight over land that had been acquired by government to build the Ekiti State University(EKSU), Ado Ekiti.
The government specifically told the warring Aposo and Aladegbohungbe families of Iyin and Ado Ekiti respectively that the land under dispute had been acquired to build the university in 1981, and that they had lost ownership of the 3,700 hectares of land under this circumstance.
Ekiti State Deputy Governor Monisade Afuye gave the warning yesterday while interacting with the families, who had been locked in an ownership battle since 2017.
The intervention stemmed from a letter that emanated from the Aposo family of Iyin Ekiti and Oluyin-in-Council, raising eyebrows over encroachment on their land by some landowners from Ado Ekiti.
Mrs Afuye, in a statement by her media aide, Victor Ogunje, advised that rather than fighting a lost battle, the feuding parties should write to the government for compensation.
She insisted that the land now belongs to the state in overriding public interest and this status she stated has not changed.
“The cadastral mapping of the area by the office of the Surveyor General and the Ekiti State Boundary Commission show that the land was acquired by government as part of the land used to build the Ekiti State University.
“When government acquires any land in public interest, no individual, group or family can claim ownership again. They can only write to government for compensation if they have not been paid.
“To those of you who have not been paid, you can collate your names and write to the Bureau of Lands for financial compensation rather than fighting over a land you have no control over again”, the Deputy Governor advised.
Shedding more light on the issue, the Surveyor General of Ekiti State, Mr. Adebayo Faleto, said three communities of Ado, Iworoko, and Iyin Ekiti donated lands in the area to government to build the educational facility in 1981.
Faleto said the section that sparked the crisis between the two families fell within the area that was acquired then, saying only the Bureau of Lands could substantiate whether compensations were paid to the affected landowners or not.
The representatives of the two families, who are already in court on the matter, promised to cooperate with government for a speedy and smooth resolution of the raging land tussle.TOPICS: