By _Babatunde Kaka
The viral news report tagged “Herdsmen Fleeing from Sunday Igboho Invade Epe Farmlands; Attack, Drive Away Resident; Family Sends SOS to Sanwo-Olu, IGP” published on May 12, 2021 by The Gazelle News has been refuted.
Eko Hot Blog, on a fact finding mission, spoke with feuding parties, community chiefs, residents of Odo-Egiri, as well as officers of the Noforija Police Division in Epe in a bid to logically unearth the ostensible reason behind the recent claims of Fulani invasion in Epe Division.
The Genesis
According to reports, a bunch of rampaging herdsmen who fled Oyo State following the merciless crusade of Yoruba activist, Sunday Igboho, had infiltrated the less densely populated Epe Division of Lagos State to continue their wanton destruction of lives and property.
The reports also claimed that despite the best efforts of the victims in enlisting the help of the local police division in the Noforija area of Epe, there had been no tangible intervention by men of the Nigeria Police Force nor any security apparatus in the country.
Lapekun’s account
According to the Lapekun of Odo-Egiri, Chief Musiliu Abiola Oliwo and his Secretary, Chief Wale Oladega, the claims represented in earlier published reports are false, erroneous, spurious and incongruous.
According to the Chiefs, the land in question, dating back to history belongs to the Odo-Egiri Community but was hijacked by the children of Late One Tumbi (Alli-Moibi Balogun Family), following the unfortunate demise of the Late Baale of Odo-Egiri.
“On the 6th May, the Moibi family sent someone to me that they discovered some herders brought in livestock to the community. I ordered an investigation into the matter and was told that the matter had been settled.
“Surprisingly, I realised that the matter had been published in some newspapers. All were lies. Two family factions, Moibi Balogun, Tola, Onashinwo and Salami are the ones causing trouble. These families who published the false allegations were the ones who sold the land in question which was transferred from one person to the other.”
“The Army, without my knowledge, visited the place at the midnight, they found nothing. The Police also came here to meet with me, they discovered everywhere was peaceful. We were taken to Elemoro on Tuesday 14th for investigation. We were also invited to Lagos State Police Command, Ikeja and they discovered the allegations to be false,” Chief Oliwo stated in an interview with Eko Hot Blog.
Interview with the CDC Chairman of Eredo LCDA
The CDC Chairman of Eredo LCDA, who also serves as the Odo-Egiri Community Secretary, Chief Wale Oladega, also confirmed that all parcels of land belongs to the community. He disclosed that the forbearers of the Moibi Balogun family were loggers.
“After the demise of their father, his offsprings forcefully took over the expanse of land being cultivated by the Tola and Onashinwo families from time immemorial.
To cut the story short, when these families discovered that the Lapekun of Odo-Egiri had gotten approval for Obaship from the tribunal whilst waiting to be presented with the instrument of office, they began making malicious falsifications against him (Chief Lapekun), because they’re aware that when fully enthroned, the disputed land may be forfeited to the community. The height of their lies was that of the allegation that a pregnant mother was missing from the community.”
Chief Oladega told our correspondent that, at the heart of the dispute is one Alhaji Eki, an Agribusiness investor who trades in livestock farming in Lakowe. He was said to have been licensed to rear livestock by the Lagos State Ministry of Agriculture.
According to him, Alhaji Eki purportedly bought the land from one of Moibi-Balogun’s progenitors.
“Although, I haven’t set my eyes on the licence because we had a meeting with him as Chief Lapekun instructed us to make sure that all livestock were withdrawn from the community as directed by the Lagos State Government.”
Eko Hot Blog’s Firsthand Findings
When Eko Hot Blog paid a visit to the disputed land at Iganke, it was discovered that occupants of the land weren’t speakers of the Hausa/Fulani dialect as both the husband and wife conversed purely in Yoruba dialect. The husband, Mr Saliu and his wife, Oluwatoyin Saliu, later joined by their children, said they are indigenes of Ason-Asa Local Government, Ilorin, Kwara State, and that they migrated from Lakowe, a community close to Ajah, on the directive of their boss, one Alhaji Eki.
Confirming Chief Oladega’s account of events, the peasant livestock farmer dispelled rumours that he attacked any member of the community with dangerous weapons. He went further to permit the reporter to search his huts, stating that he’s not a gun-wielding herder, as such an act is alien to his tradition.
What did the residents say?
EkoHotBlog also spoke with some residents within geographical proximity to the disputed land. One Mrs Olabisi, in the company of her neighbours, denied in entirety the allegation that Fulani herders invaded the community. They refuted claims that there had been any form of mayhem capable of threatening public peace in the community.
Interview with DPO, Noforija Police Station
When contacted, Mr Agidi A, the DPO of Noforija Police Station, Epe Division, said the reports which claimed that the police had been complicit in the hostile takeover of the landed property by Fulani herders was completely fictitious.
“If you’re asking me questions based on the news that went viral two weeks ago about Fulani herdsmen, Ali Balogun has come to me and apologise officially, Oluwo Success and co, the head of the family, that there was a mix-up,” he said.
Mr. Agidi further stated that the crux of the issue is a land matter in which one side is hell-bent on arm twisting the other with popular media.
The Ali-Moibi Balogun Family’s Reaction
Reacting, the family head of the Ali-Moibi Baloguns, Mr Kolawole Moibi-Balogun, said that the disputed Iganke expanse of land belongs to his forbearers, a timber logger popularly called “Baba Oje.”
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Mr Kolawole Moibi, who stated that his grandfather was the first Baale of the community, denied transacting any land business with Alhaji Eki on whose directive the herders settled on the disputed land. He wondered why it was only his ancestral land that the community chose for herding, despite the Government ban on open grazing.
He alleged that the Baale and his cohorts, who have no other source of livelihood than land sales, were not proactive enough in nipping the arrival of the herders in the bud for weeks after he, (Mr Kolawole) lodged a complaint. He said at that time, the huts were still at the skeletal stage.
Kolawole, however, maintained his stance that the occupants of the landed property in dispute are Fulani herdsmen, even though he could not authoritatively ascertain the claims that the Fulani herdsmen were of the same extraction as those evicted from Ibarapa area of Oyo State during Sunday Igboho’s crack-down against their criminal activities.
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