Some residents of Ishaaga in Osun Egbado community in Mowo, Badagry, Lagos, on Monday, protested alleged invasion of their community by land grabbers and abduction of some community leaders.

Contacted, the Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Benjamin Hundeyin, said the Lagos Police Command is aware of the incident and the case is under investigation.

The protesting residents blocked Badagry Lagos expressway causing gridlock on the road. They carried placards with different inscriptions such as “Save us from Land grabbers in Unity Estate Osun Egbado, Mowo;” “They came with many hoodlums and they have kidnapped our traditional rulers,” “Gov. Sanwo-Olu, please come to our aid.”

One of the protesters, Mrs Oluwatosin Lawal, said that the land grabbers came into the community around 10:00a.m on November11, calling all residents to come out.

“I was in my room when I had them calling everyone to come out. They asked us not to take pictures or record anything. They said they are owners of the land and they have come to demolish all the houses in the community.

“They said we should remove the roof of our houses and leave the area. No fewer than 400 thugs started destroying our property. They called on the traditional chiefs to come and have meeting with them but when the chiefs came, they grabbed them and forced them into their bus and took them to an unknown destination,” she added.

Lawal said that the attackers said that they were coming back to demolish all the houses in the community. She said that since Friday till yesterday, the abducted community leaders had not returned to the community.

Mr Samson Irelegbe, a landlord said he bought his land in the community in 2005 from the land owner. When I was building my house there was no problem. Now they have come about 17 years later claiming that the land belonged to another person.

“Our children cannot go to school, our wives can’t go to market and we are all stranded here. We are appealing to the government to come and rescue us and address the matter because we don’t know these people,” he said.

Mr Ibrahim Opeyemi, another resident of the area said one Mutairu Owoeye, brought another set of land grabbers to the community on Tuesday afternoon, beating and abducting some residents.

“They came with earth moving equipment, threatening to demolish over 600 buildings erected in the area. We can’t move around, the land grabbers are everywhere in the area, beating people and destroying property.

“We are appealing to the government to come to our aid, we borrowed money from banks to build our houses, we didn’t know anybody except the people that sold the land to us and they have abducted them,” he said. (Vanguard)

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