Kunle Adelabu
The boundary dispute between the Ikorodu Local Government and Ijede Local Council Development Area took a dangerous dimension yesterday (Wednesday) as hoodlums attacked political office holders from Ikorodu LG at Igbodu.
For some years now, the two councils have been enmeshed in a protracted conflict over the of Igbodu while interventions by political leaders, the Lagos State House of Assembly and office of the Surveyor – General of the State in the matter have been largely unsuccessful.
THE IMPACT gathered that the issue regarding the controversial area was discussed at a meeting involving the Chairmen of the affected councils and Apex leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ikorodu Division and the two chairmen were asked to stay action until after the Lagos East Senatorial bye – election on Saturday, December 5, 2020, when the leaders pledged to looked into the matter.
Some of the leaders at the meeting were Asiwaju Olorunfunmi Basorun, Asipa Koali Olusanya, Hon. Sanai Agunbiade and Hon. Nurudeen Solaja.
According to the report gathered, the latest face-off was triggered by the visit of the road rehabilitation committee on Gberigbe-Agura road, constituted by the Chairman of the Ikorodu Local Government, the parent-body of the five LCDAs in Ikorodu, Hon. Wasiu Adesina, to Igbodu.
The committee is led by the Secretary to the Ikorodu LG, Alhaji Lateef Afinni, while the Council Leader who is also representing Ward F (Gberigbe/Agura), Hon. Ayobami Salman, Supervisory Councilor for Environment, Mr Shakiru Sowemimo and others are members.
According to report, the committee, led by Hon. Afinni, had gone to Gbodu on Wednesday (yesterday) to erect a signpost to indicate that the council is about to commence the rehabilitation of the road and also do environmental assessment when some suspected cult members, led by one Alake, attacked them.
While other members of the committee took to their heels, Alhaji Afinni and Hon. Salman were not that lucky as they were said to have been harassed the their assailants.
Hon. Salman was said to have been left off the hook after he was beating with canes while Hon. Afinni was reportedly subject to a more severe treatment.
Speaking with THE IMPACT on his sick bed in a hospital in Ikorodu (name withheld), Alhaji Afinni, who spoke with great difficulty, said that he was beating severely and that Alake also used a big stick to hit him on the head and later shot at him.
“We were attacked by a group of some cult members. It was one Alake that led them”, he stated.
“I was seriously beaten and Alake hit me on the head and body with a big stick. He brought out a gun when I tried to drag the stick with him and prevent him from further hitting me with it.
“He shot at my leg but I jumped”, he alleged.
Some chieftains of APC, Alhaji Lamidi Folorunsho, Alhaji Ola4 and another party leader that visited the victim at the hospital around 6.00pm yesterday when our reporter also visited him, condemned the attack on the government officials by those they alleged are agent of Ijede LCDA.
“Have they forgotten that Ikorodu LG is their parent – body? How could anyone have done this to a high ranking government official?” Alhaji Ola4 asked.
“It’s high time that this matter is critically looked into”, he added.
Meanwhile, THE IMPACT gathered that Alake and his team had allegedly approached the Chairman of Ikorodu LG, Hon. Wasiu Adeshina for approval to collect revenue from commercial tricycle and motorcycle operators in the troubled axis but that while his request was outrightly rejected, the council boss awarded the revenue collection job to another faction.
We also gathered that Alake was later awarded the contract to collect revenue in the same area by the Chairman of Ijede LCDA, Hon. Fathiu Salisu.
It was also gathered that the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) and Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) have also been fighting for the control of the controversial area.
While Hon. Adeshina told THE IMPACT that the award for the collection of revenue in the area has been given to the NURTW, Hon Fathiu acknowledged the dispute between the two transport unions over the control of the area and said that his administration is finding ways to resolve the matter amicably.
Also, Hon. Adeshina, while speaking with our reporter last night on the attack on the council’s delegation and the controversy between Ikorodu LG and Ijede LCDA over Igbodu , said:
“I was the one that constituted a committee to make the Gberigbe – Agura road motorable so that we can lessen the suffering of our people in that axis since the state government is yet to commence work on the damaged road.
“Our people have been complaining about the road and we decided to do a palliative on it pending the time the state government will fix it.
“It was the Supervisory Councilor for Environment (Mr Shakiru Sowemimo) that called me that they have been attacked and that the SLG was seriously assaulted.
“I have not been able to see the SLG to hear from him directly about what actually happened”, he said.
Hon. Adeshina also said that AP in Igbodu is part of Ikorodu LG territory.
“Igbodu is part of Ikorodu Local Government and the issue was discussed at a meeting with party leaders on Tuesday, November 24, 2020. It was Fathiu (Chairman, Ijede LCDA) that raised it and the representative of Ikorodu Constituency II, Hon. Solaja queried him and told him that he was wrong”, Adeshina said.
“He (Fathiu) said that we wanted to erect a signpost at APin Igbodu, which is part of Ikorodu LG, and claimed that the place is under his council’s jurisdiction”.
On the allegation that he denied Alake and his gang the opportunity to collect revenue in Igbodu, he said:
“I cannot give approval to someone that is using gun to disrupt the peace of the community except you want me to encourage such act…”, Hon. Adeshina alleged.
He further stated that the collection of revenue in the area has been awarded to NURTW.
“That place was approved for NURTW operations about two years ago. I cannot issue a double approval to another person or group”, Adeshina clarified.
His Ijede LCDA counterpart, Hon. Fathiu Salisu, also speaking with THE IMPACT, denied any knowledge of the attack on the Ikorodu LG delegation.
“I did not know anything about the attack on Ikorodu SLG. I am just hearing from you about it”, he said.
He, however, maintained his stance that Igbodu is part of Ijede LCDA and under no condition will it be ceded to Ikorodu LG.
“AP in Igbodu is part of Ijede. It has never been part of Ikorodu and will never be part of it”, Fathiu categorically stated.
“I told leaders at a meeting yesterday (Tuesday, November 24, 2020) that Adeshina (Chairman, Ikorodu LGA) has started again because I heard that they wanted to erect a signpost on a land that belongs to Ijede”.
He said that he cannot descend so low to attack anybody over the issue, more so, that the matter has been reported to the party leaders who had promised to look into it after the Lagos East Senatorial bye-election.
“Since I have reported the matter to our leaders and they told me that all the boundary disputes will be looked into and resolved after the election, I will not descend so low to engage in violence to the extent of attacking anybody.
“We were told to stay out of the controversial area until after the election.
“I also gathered that there is a crisis in that axis between NURTW and RTEAN over who controls the area. I have invited all the concerned parties and lnsha Allah, I will resolve the matter for them”, he said.
