- Adenekan claimed that when the issue was reported to the police, some university staff members were detained instead of the actual perpetrators, suggesting police complicity in the matter.
- He called for immediate intervention from both federal and state governments to prevent further encroachment on the university’s land.
The management of Fountain University in Osogbo, Osun State, has raised concerns over the actions of suspected land grabbers who are allegedly selling the university’s land to unsuspecting individuals.
Eko Hot Blog reports that the university has urged President Bola Tinubu, Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke, and Inspector-General of Police Kayode Egbetokun to intervene and put an end to these illegal activities.
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During a press conference on the university campus in Osogbo, Registrar Mr. Sheriff Adenekan stated that armed individuals, allegedly acting on behalf of land grabbers, had been selling portions of the institution’s 124.349 hectares of land in the Agric Farm Settlement area in Oke Osun, Osogbo.
Adenekan claimed that when the issue was reported to the police, some university staff members were detained instead of the actual perpetrators, suggesting police complicity in the matter.
He called for immediate intervention from both federal and state governments to prevent further encroachment on the university’s land.
Emphasizing that the university legally acquired the land and holds all necessary documents, including a Certificate of Occupancy issued on January 5, 2006, by the Osun State Ministry of Lands, Adenekan argued that the situation must be addressed to protect the institution’s property rights and integrity.
“It was shocking when, in October 2024, certain individuals suddenly stormed the land and forcefully gained entry in a violent manner.
The land grabbers, acting in a manner suggestive of conspiratorial gangsterism, destroyed the university’s signposts and other valuables before fraudulently selling the land to unsuspecting buyers.
“The university reported the incident to the nearest police station, and the matter eventually reached the Zone 11 Police Headquarters in Osogbo.
However, it was disappointing that university staff members were arrested and prosecuted by the same police to whom we had reported the crime,” Adenekan said.
He called on Tinubu, Adeleke, and other relevant authorities to intervene and provide security for the university, its staff, and its property against non-state actors who had unlawfully occupied the land and continued their activities unchecked.
“It is important to state that no court has issued a judgment invalidating the university’s title to the land.
The university has consulted extensively with community leaders, elders, and other stakeholders over this troubling development, yet the activities of the land grabbers continue unabated,” he added.
When contacted, the Public Relations Officer of Zone XI Command, Osogbo, Ade Ogunyemi, dismissed the allegations, challenging the university to specify the cases it had reported that were improperly handled.
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Ogunyemi said, “That is impossible. We do not compromise here. They should provide details of specific cases they reported and claims that were turned against them. I promise to investigate and identify the IPOs handling the cases. We do not compromise here.”
