Intervene In Kelebe-omu Land Dispute to Avert Crisis, Osogbo Residents Urge President Tinubu, Gov Adeleke, Chief Of Army Staff

Some residents of Osogbo community, Osun State capital have appealed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Osun state Governor, Ademola Adeleke and the Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen Taoreed Lagbaja to intervene in the lingering land tussle between the Nigerian Army and Kelebe-Omu lands owners in Osogbo/Olorunda Local Government Areas of Osun State.

The residents who spoke to newsmen in Osogbo over the Kelebe-Omu land dispute on Thursday said despite the court Judgement which ordered the Nigerian Army should return the land to real owners, some military personnel still went ahead to erect pillers on the said land.

Recall that an Osun State High Court sitting in Ile-Ife, presided over by his lordship, Honourable Justice A.O. Ayoola had on 10 of January, 2023 adjudged/ ordered and directed the Nigerian Army to yield and give up possession of all pieces or vast expanse of land measuring appropriately 3, 646 acres of land , situate , lying and being at between Kelebe Area and Omu stream in Osogbo/Olorunda Local Government Area os the state.

Court ordered Nigerian Army to pay N200 million to Kelebe-Omu in Olorunda Local Government Area of Osun State for the destruction of their land.

The plaintiffs in the suit No: HOS/40/2020, filed by Chief Amodu Akanbi, Sulaiman Folorunsho, Alhaji Ibraheem Olabode, Alfa Rasaki Tiamiyu, and Yekini Salawu, on behalf of the Kelebe- Omu Area land owners families, against the Attorney General of the Federation, Minister of Defence, Post-Service Housing Development Limited, The Nigeria Army and The Chief of Army Staff, said the acquisition of their land by the defendants is unconstitutional and illegal.

The plaintiffs argued that the acquisition of their land was ‘incomplete and inconclusive’ because no notice of intention to acquire the lands was served on the owners of the land.

According to the plaintiffs, no publication of the notice of intention to acquire the land compulsorily, was gazetted or published in any national newspaper and the purpose of the acquisition was a smokescreen to deprive the land-owners of the land and vest same on others.

They accused the Nigerian Army of selling the land which was forcibly acquired from them to an individual for personal use, alleging that the Army collected money from individuals that the portion of land was leased.

Justice A. O. Ayoola of Ile-Ife High Court held that the defendants are using the acquired land for private purposes and not for public purposes for which the land was requisitioned by the Nigerian Army.

“The plaintiffs are hereby awarded N200 million as damages for the destruction of the land by the defendants.

“The defendants are to yield the possession of the land situated and being between Kelebe area and Omu Stream in Osogbo/Olorunda Local Government Area of Osun,” the court held.

However, after the court had given its ruling, it was gathered that owners of the land obtained the warrant of possession of the land on 25 of April, 2023.

One of the family who spoke under the condition of anonymity said despite the court ruling and warrant of possession were obtained, “some military personnel came to meet us on the land and started beating us, they even threatened to kill, if we dare come on the land”.

However, on Thursday, February 8, 2024, one of the hunters who went on the land for hunting found some pillers suspected to be erected by the soldiers to divide the land into pieces

” They want to cheat the families that own the land and this can cause crisis.

“I have the opportunity of taking to some of those families and with the way they were sounding , it seem they are being frustrated and this, I think, may cause crisis. To avert this, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke and the Chief of Army Staff need to intervene before it snowball to crisis.

“We don’t want what happened in some Communities where they are fighting and killing themselves over the land to happen here in Osogbo”, he warned.

Another residents, Alhaji Kazeem Bolarinwa said the conduct of Nigeria army is fragrant disobedience to judgement of court and the rule of law and it threatened the peace of the public.

Bolarinwa said: “I just want to appeal to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Osun state Governor, and Chief of Army Staff to their good offices and stop men of Nigerian Army to from further attacks on the landowners and erecting of pillers of demarcation on those people’s land after due execution of the judgement of the court.

“However, Nigerian Army should know that the action of some of its personnel is tantamount to disobedience to the court Judgement and way to disrespect the court”, he said.