News in brief:
â Farmers in Itokin, Epe, Lagos State, staged a protest at the Lagos State House of Assembly, alleging the takeover of their government-allocated farmlands by the military.
â They demanded immediate relocation with proper documents, compensations, and an investigation into the land ownership issue.
Farmers in Itokin, Epe, Lagos State, staged a protest at the Lagos State House of Assembly, alleging the illegal takeover of their farmlands by military personnel. They claim the land, allocated to them by the state government for farming, has been invaded, their crops destroyed, and livestock scattered.
The protesting farmers, under the banner of AFERO Commercial Farmers Cooperative, made specific demands to the authorities. These demands include the immediate relocation with proper Certificates of Occupancy, monetary compensation for lost land and crops, and investigation into the land ownership issue.
According to a media coverage of the news, these farmers, who were originally located in Ibeju Lekki, were displaced in 2014 to make way for the Lekki International Airport project. Subsequently, they were then relocated to Eluju Mowo/Mutaku in 2015 but reportedly faced constant harassment from land grabbers, thugs, and even policemen hired by these individuals.
The farmers discovered, after their most recent relocation, that the land allocated by the government belonged to the military. They questioned the Lagos State governmentâs choice of allocating military land to them as well as its unresponsive to their plight despite legal issues and hardships. As of press time, neither the military nor the Lagos State government had responded to requests for comment.
