Furore over Saraki’s house demolition in Kwara

The demolition of the property of the late Dr. Olusola Saraki, the godfather of Kwara State politics, by the AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq administration has continued to generate controversy. ADEKUNLE JIMOH highlights the arguments canvassed by both sides

 

The caustic diatribes between the Kwara State government and former Senate President Bukola Saraki over the revocation of plots of land in Ilofa Road, GRA, Ilorin, said to be the property of the late Dr. Olusola Saraki has reached a crescendo. The state government recently moved its heavy-duty equipment and demolished the structures on the land.

Before the demolition, government announced that the parcels of land were  allegedly acquired by the late godfather of Kwara State politics.

To the former Senate President, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), his kinsmen and loyalists, the decision of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq was politically motivated.

But, AbdulRazaq said his decision to revote the said property followed a resolution of the House of Assembly that he should reclaim the land.

The legislators added that the land was arbitrarily taken over in the 1990s without any evidence of payment by the Asa Investment Limited, although the land was meant for public use.

Consequently, the governor signed a constitutional instrument withdrawing the allocation of plots of land to the firm, asserting that the it was unlawfully appropriated, contrary to the purpose for which it was meant.

He noted in the revocation order that the land was originally meant for the construction of another phase of the Kwara State Civil Service Secretariat and a parking space for both the civil service clinic and the secretariat.

The revocation order reads: “In exercise of the powers conferred by Section 5 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) 1999 and Section 1 and 28 of the Land Use Act Cap. L.5 of 2004 and all other powers enabling me in that behalf, I, Mallam AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, Governor of Kwara State of Nigeria, give the following notice:

“The Notice may be cited as the Land Use (Revocation of Right of Occupancy and withdrawal of allocation) Notice 2019.

“Allocation of plots of land 1, 3 and 5 TPS/MISC 129 to Asa Investment (Nig) Ltd. which is meant for the Kwara State Secretariat.

The land, specifically and more described in survey No. KwSH 927 and Land/G1071 situated and lying beside Civil Service Clinic along Ilofa Road Ilorin, Kwara State, is hereby revoked and withdrawn for overriding public interest for use of the purpose, it is originally meant for: which is for the construction of Kwara State secretariat; parking space for civil service clinic and the Kwara state secretariat and annex to the civil service when upgraded to a hospital.

“That the plots allocated are hereby declared void. Notice is therefore given to you, Asa Investments Nigeria Limited, that the plots of land 1,3 and 5 TPS/MISC 129 allocated to you and any title on the land whatsoever are hereby revoked and the allocation is withdrawn for overriding public interest.”

The Director-General, Bureau of Lands, Ibrahim Salman, said: “The entire land was acquired in the 1970s for Overriding Public Interest and same was initially designed to host phase II of the State Secretariat.

The construction of the said State Secretariat Phase II was actually commenced and it was at superstructure level before the same was abandoned.

“The entire land was later redesigned in the 1980s for the construction of a Civil Service Clinic, State Secretariat, and a parking lot for both the Clinic and the State Secretariat.

“The clinic was subsequently constructed in 1982, while the remaining plots of land were conceived for the expansion of the Clinic into a full-fledged Hospital.

“The dream of the state government was stalled when part of the land slated for the parking lot was spuriously allocated in principle to one Asa Investment for commercial purpose.

“From available records, the allocation was not based on a formal application, nor application forms filled; there was no evidence of payment for the said allocation as stipulated in the letter of allocation in principle and consequently, no right of occupancy was ever issued to the company.

“Furthermore, in flagrant abuse of the allocation terms, the company took possession of the land and constructed what is today known as ‘Ile Arugbo’ on part of the land that was designed as a parking lot and later conceived to host the expansion of the civil service clinic into a full-fledged hospital.

“Following a resolution of the Kwara State House of Assembly mandating him to revoke/withdraw the spurious allocation, Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq recently signed an instrument to reclaim the land on the ground that same was unlawfully allocated to a private Company contrary to the public purpose of its acquisition and occupied in breach of the terms of allocation.

“This is intended to state the facts on the land recently revoked/withdrawn by the state government as contained in our records.”

But, Saraki said the governor had crossed the line of decency with his efforts to erase the legacies of his (Saraki’s) late father.

He said the war of attrition waged against the legacy of his father and everything that belongs to the late politician simply portrayed the governor as a man who lacks the sense of history and set out only to fight the Saraki family, but not to serve the interest of Kwarans.

“Kwara State Governor, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq finally showed his true colour when he announced his decision to revoke the ownership of a property rightfully held by my late father, Dr. Olusola Abubakar Saraki on Plots 1, 3 and 5 Ilofa Road, GRA, Ilorin, popularly known as Ile Arugbo, (Old People’s home), which since the Second Republic, has always been used to host the weekly gathering of a multitude of aged people in the society who are provided food, money, and health services, as part of the social welfare programme sponsored by the late politician. The tradition has since been maintained.

“Before now, this same governor had invited all the members of the House of Assembly and directed them to commence the process of amending the law to change the name of the State University, which the last administration renamed after my late father, Dr. Abubakar Olusola Saraki.

He then followed up on this act of vengeance by initiating a bill to rename the University and expunge the name of the late Dr. Olusola Saraki. Now, he has decided to also revoke the titles of the landed property, which belongs to the late politician. May be, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq thinks his will be the last administration in Kwara State, but definitely, this is self-delusion.

“The property had been rightfully allocated to my late father under the name of one of his companies, Asa Investment Limited, since the 1980s and contrary to the claim of the governor, the land was properly allocated and a Right of Occupancy title issued on it.

It should be noted that the excuse was given by Abdulrazaq in his revocation order holds no water since it is clear that this is the height of his vengeance against my father, Dr. Abubakar Olusola Saraki and I.

“Till today, many Kwarans have been wondering what problem the governor has with the late Oloye Abubakar Olusola Saraki or what the late politician did to offend him.

It is surprising that of all vacant plots of land in strategic places across the Ilorin township, the one that Abdulrahman found useful for his vengeful plan is the one owned by late Dr. Saraki.

It is beyond comprehension why a governor would set as his main agenda the objective of undermining and waging a war of attrition against a man who is no longer around.

“This action is clearly a manifestation of vengeance and it shows that this governor is not out to serve any public purpose or pursue any development agenda. In his narrow-mindedness, he believes his victory at the polls is empowerment, entitlement, and enablement to settle scores, provoke and pursue inter-family rivalry.

Those who voted for the party in power in Kwara state and Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq obviously did not vote for the man to enable him to wage war against Dr. Olusola Saraki and his legacies. They expected development and fulfillment of promises.

“If the governor believes people are not taking stock of his misguided and deceptive actions and that because he is in power, he could do whatever he likes, he must be a joker.

Also, this war against the Sarakis will not successfully veil his unpreparedness for governance and divert people’s attention from the glaring lack of visionary, clear-cut plan to deliver on his empty promises to the people.

He definitely cannot get away with all the atrocities he has been committing.

“Since the outcome of the elections in March, despite the fact that there are clear grounds to challenge the results in court, I have decided to demonstrate maturity, statesmanship and sportsmanship.

I have chosen not to make comment on the policies, programmes, and actions of the administration in Kwara State or that of its head.

Also, I deliberately stayed away from the State to avoid creating any distraction for the administration. My decision is borne out of a genuine restraint to enable the administration settle down and fulfill its numerous promises to the people of our state.

“However, seven months down the line, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq has shown that its cardinal programme is to wage war against my late father and I.

He has demonstrated that his only competence and astuteness is in the area of viciously assailing the late Oloye Saraki and I. Definitely, he is a man with no sense of history

“Perhaps, I should let it be known that if Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq thinks he is taking all these actions to get at me, he is only deceiving himself. There is no basis for competition between us.

“Just as I did after the election, my advice to Mallam Abdulrazaq that he should devote his time and energy to providing good governance and genuine development of the state.

“This governor has shown that he is not a man who wants peace, co-operation and development. He believes that a constant attack on my family and I is all that he needs to win the hearts of Kwara people.

The need to provide good governance is secondary to him.

“However, it should be made clear to Abdulrazaq and his administration that their attack on my late father cannot erase the legacies of Oloye. No evil design, negative plot or propaganda can successfully rewrite the history of Kwara State.

This plot against my late father will not stand. And I will like to make it clear that we will contest this petty, malicious, dubious and bias action of a parochial, vicious and vindictive administration through all legal means. We are sure this is not an action taken in public interest. Rather, it is done in pursuit of a selfish and devious objective.”

In the same vein, Kinsmen of late Dr. Olusola Saraki under the aegis of Agbaji Development Association (ADA) argued that the action of the government was borne out the age long rivalry between the Sarakis and AbdulRazaqs.

National President of ADA, Alhaji Musa Olanrewaju said the “action of the state government to revoke the said property is a plan to erase the legacy of the political history of the father of Kwara politics.

“The land in question has never been in contention with any government prior to coming of Mallam AbdulRazaq. The recent action of the government has made the Agbaji community to know the intention of Governor AbdulRazaq of his vengeance and way of settling scores with Saraki family.

“Evidently, the property in question was being used by the Dr. Saraki to care for the aged, widows, less privileged and students who lack resources to face the challenges of life.

“The Agbaji community therefore speaks to the state government to have a rethink and tow the harmonious part of this state particularly Ilorin being home of peace.

“The community implores the stakeholders to wade into the matter and find a lasting solution to the long term rivalry between the two families. This is important not to disrupt the peaceful coexistence of the people of Ilorin emirate and Kwara state at large.”

Lending his voice, a member of the National Executive Council (NEC) of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Issa Aremu observed that the land revocation might constitute “unnecessary distraction” for Governor Abdulrazaq’s administration which he said had commendably hit the ground running in terms of executing programmes and projects that have direct positive impact on the lives of Kwarans.

The labour leader described the revocation of the land as “an unnecessary and avoidable blunt on the good developmental news from the state.

Read Also: Justice shall prevail, says Saraki as groups protest demolition

 

“I want to be properly understood. Any government has the responsibility to demand for accountability and probity. I am indeed impressed that the government has been doing that compelling some past government officials to render accounts for their stewardship.

However, you don’t compel accountability from the dead, in this case land belonging to late Olusola Saraki who is not even alive to defend himself” he said.

Comrade Aremu urged the governor to combine what he called “his acknowledged humility, simplicity and modesty with forgiveness and reconciliation in governance.

“As the saying goes: Devil is in the details: reportedly the land was originally meant for government secretariat and parking space of the civil service Clinic, but illegally allocated to a private firm Asa Investments Limited without certificate of occupancy or any record of payment to the state government.

But if you ask me godliness is in forgiveness more so for the dead in this case the late Dr. Olusola Saraki.”

“We are proud to be part of the peaceful revolution through voting and votes counts during the 2019 elections, which put an end  to PDP dictatorship and bad governance in the state.

We need the same bipartisan partnership across the state to urgently overcome incidence of poverty which is still unacceptably high in Kwara.

“We don’t need anything that will divert us in the state, nor inadvertently exhume the moribund PDP through a belated land revocation and attendant sentiments that trail it.”.

In spite of all these tantrums, accusations and counter-accusation, the state government pulled down the structures on parts of the land on wee hours of Thursday last week.

On that fateful day, Communications Commissioner, Alhaji Murtala Olanrewaju said, “The state government early today began the physical reclamation of the plot of land bordering the civil service clinic in Ilorin.

“The reclamation exercise began in the early hours of Thursday to avoid any needless confrontation. Attempts by some persons to provoke government’s agents on lawful duty were resisted by the security agents who exercised the highest level of restraint and professionalism.

“Contrary to the claim that the state government was served court papers on the matter, we state that no court paper has been served as at the time the government took steps to preserve what lawfully belongs to the people.

“Finally, we urge the people of the state to remain calm, peaceful, and be guided only by facts of the matter and not be drawn into emotional outburst that is targeted at distracting the public from the issues at stake.

While the administration is focused on restoring sanity to the state after years of barefaced impunity, we will do so within the limit of the law.”

He added that “government’s position is that the land was (and still is) a public property originally meant for the construction of government secretariat, a Civil Service Clinic, and a parking lot for the two. What the government has done is to reclaim the land in the spirit of what it was originally meant for.”

In its angry reaction to the development, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state described the action of the government as too extreme.

PDP chair in the state, Kola Shittu, said that “Governor AbdulRaman Abdulrazaq has taken it too far by demolishing the structures on Dr Olusola Saraki’s place where he used to take care of the elderly women (Ile Arugbo) every week.

“The demolition is shocking, it is unfortunate. The issue of the land was being treated as if it was a stolen land and it was not, it was allocated and there is a letter of allocation written by the government which allocated it.

“Let us even assume that it was not paid for. If this is the case, what the government should have done is to write the Saraki’s family about this and if this had been done, the Saraki’s family that I know can even donate it back to the government.

“The late Olusola Saraki donated so many plots of land to people. He donated his land for marketers at Ago market in Ilorin when the marketers were to be relocate from the market.

“The government should look at the issue again. It should not be a vendetta thing. Government should not be run along that line. We in the PDP believe government  should be about development and not vendetta, I have as chairman of the PDP, an opposition party, commended  the government on its programmes I considered praise-worthy.”

Shittu however appealed to supporters of the party and of the late Saraki to remain calm and not give room for violence over the development, saying there are many other places that Bukola Saraki can provide for them for the purpose the demolished structure served them.

Also Speaking PDP state women leader, Alhaja Ramatalai Oganija and party’s youths leader in Kwara Central Senatorial District, Isa Mohammed described the demolition as an act induced by hatred and which is capable of causing disharmony and disruption of peace in the state.

They however urged their people not to take laws into their hands. The state government claimed responsibility for destroying the structure on the reclaimed land.