Residents of Magodo Phase II Estate in Lagos converged this morning to protest the presence of armed policemen in their estate. The estate management has shut the two gates leading into the estate.
Speaking during the protest the Chairman of Magodo Residents’ Association, Bajo Osinubi, said: “We called our people out to protest this morning over 50 policemen living within the estate. We want the police out of our estate. There are no cases of kidnapping, rioting, but why are they still here? We want them out of our estate.
We want to live in peace. This is a business between the Lagos State government and the Adeyiga family.
Osinubi further said “We are under siege; the police have been here for two weeks, they came in December to take possession of properties on behalf of Adeyiga family and others. Since then, we’ve gotten in touch with prominent personalities to intervene and get the police off our estate. We are victims, even inside our own homes. The police have been here. They are very restless. Just imagine there is an altercation between a resident and the police. The easiest way to avoid any such scenario is to detach the police officers back to Abuja.
He added “We’ve allowed people to go out, but we are protesting this morning to let the world know what’s going. We are supposed to be at work, but we want the whole world to know what’s happening at Magodo. The governor spoke with me yesterday (Monday), and he said he’s on top of it. He has promised to address the situation. The Commissioner of Police last week sent the DCP Ops to supervise the withdrawal of troops but they claimed they are yet to get signal. We learned the police were drafted from Abuja. Our immediate concern is to get the police out of the estate for us to leave in peace. We need the government to do the needful to get the family off our neck. About four to five years ago, they did it, and now again this year, they want to do it.”
Towards the end of December last year, the Journal has reported exclusively about a fierce ownership struggle for land in the Highbrow Magodo Estate area of Lagos; a protracted issue between the Lagos State Government and some original land owners that has been unresolved for years and is on the verge of a full blown crisis.