Officers of the Lagos State Command of Nigerian Police, yesterday, demolished over 600 structures erected on 65 hectares of land in Mowo Phase II, Badagry, Olorunda Local Council Development Area, LCDA, accusing the owners of trespassing on its land.
According to reports,the demolition came barely two years after the command, through the state Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, issued letters to the trespassers to vacate the land to no avail.
Sources close to the police said the order to demolish the houses was given by the Inspector General of Police, IGP, Abubakar Muhammed.
It was learnt that the 65-hectare land was acquired by the Police about 10 years ago to build houses for senior police officers and got the Certificate of Occupancy, C of O, from the Lagos State Government in 2008.
After a few years, land speculators started encroaching on the land when the authorities failed to develop the land for its specific purpose.
The residents, however, argued that a case to determine the ownership of the land was still at the Badagry High Court, Badagry.
Mr. Waheed Yakub, one of the affected residents said: “I am yet to process my C of O but I bought the land over 10 years ago from the Opeisa family and I developed it a year after.”
He said the Nigeria Police Force acquired the land about seven years ago to build houses for senior police officers and got the C of O from the state government in 2008.
“Land speculators started encroaching on the land when the authorities failed to do something on it,” he added.
A police source disclosed that when the police discovered the encroachment, they issued a quit notice to the owners of the houses to vacate the land in 2011. The last notice was served on them two weeks ago.
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