PLATEAU STATE GOVT IN AN ALLEGED LAND-GRABBING BID - Owners Stage A Peaceful Protest

BY LOVINS YAKUBU 

LAND OWNERS AT DWEI

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Land owners at Dwei and Jerek in Du, Jos South Local Government Area of Plateau State Nigeria, have accused the Plateau State government of a grand ploy to take over their plots of land by force. 



The land owners were seen in their hundreds carrying placards on Monday 23^rd January, 2017 with different inscriptions such as “OUR LAND IS NOT FOR GRAZING RESERVE”. “You Can’t Take Our Inheritance By Force” boldly written. 
 

RT. HON. SIMON BAKO LALONG, Executive Governor, Plateau State, Nigeria

When African Drum requested to know why they were protesting, a lady who simply gave her name Lydia said, “It is not a protest please. But if even you want to tag our action as protest, it is not a violent one. We just want to make our position known to government in a peaceful and civilized manner. Since last year, we reliably gathered that government has concluded plans to take over our land.  

“And within few weeks, we started hearing announcement over the radio and television asking land owners of this area to meet here today with Plateau State Government officials. Having all gathered here this morning, official of the State Ministry of Land and Survey came in a Hilux pick-up van but refused to utter a word to anybody, and just took photographs and video-recorded the area, and left, thereby confirming the allegation that they want to forcefully take over this place. Our message to the government is that our land can only be taken when we are all dead. We are ready to sacrifice our last drop of blood to protect what rightly belong to us.” 

Also speaking to African Drum, Hon. Stephen Bot, a community leader said, “We heard the announcement over the media by government asking land owners here to meet with official of the Ministry of Lands and Survey. Immediately, the elders of the community met, took a decision and sent delegation to government to find out what government’s intention is all about with regards to our land. Unfortunately, government did not give attention to our delegation”. 

LAND OWNERS WITH PLY CARDS

 Hon. Bot also collaborated with Lydia’s position when he said that they all gathered waiting for the government official (everyone by their plot), only for official of the Ministry of Lands and Survey to come and snap some pictures and left,” - a development that has heightened their fears.

 “We have been informed that government has concluded plans to take over this place for reasons best known to them. But our position is that if government has the intention of taking over this place for a reason that is in the interest of the people of the state, we will oblige and support it. But government needs to make its intention known to the land owners and the community leaders. We have to work together. Development is a two-way affair. The community has to be involved in whatever development that is meant for them”.

All efforts to see the Commissioner of Land, Survey and Town Planning, Hon. Festus Fuanter, proved abortive. But a reliable source in the ministry said the area in question is not part of the area government intends to develop, which is from the southern strip of the new government house (little Rayfield) and stretched down to where the police mountain troop office is located, close to Bukuru. 

When our reporter sought to know why the ministry officials were in Dwei and Jerek, and if that area is not part of the area that government is not talking about, he said he cannot answer that question. 

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