A Lagos-based real estate company, Nigercat Nigeria Limited, has petitioned the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, over an alleged incident of property demolition and gate removal. The incident occurred at Oduduwa Crescent, Ikeja GRA, Lagos. According to the company's chairman, Alhaji Osuolale, the incident involved operatives from the Special Enquiry Bureau (SEB) of the Lagos State Police Command. They allegedly visited the property in connection with a complaint concerning the land.
The dispute arose from a claim that the property had been leased to another person for 10 years. However, Osuolale disputed this claim, stating that the person who originally owned the property before him had informed him that he was not aware of any such 10-year lease. Osuolale also alleged that the person said to have executed the lease was a former agent whose authority to act on behalf of the owner had previously been revoked.
The alleged incident occurred shortly before a scheduled meeting between the parties, which had been arranged by the police as part of a fact-finding exercise. Osuolale claimed that the police had invited the parties to a meeting scheduled for the following Monday, but officers allegedly went to the property a day earlier. By the time Osuolale arrived at the property on Monday, the gate had been removed and a new one installed.
Osuolale stated that he had taken steps to regularise his interest in the property with the Lagos State Government, including payment of the necessary statutory fees. He insisted that the company's ownership of the property had not been successfully challenged in court. The businessman urged the Inspector-General of Police to investigate the incident and ensure that the parties involved refrain from further interference with the property pending the resolution of the dispute.
The company's allegations could not be independently verified due to limited available information. The position of the Lagos State Police Command and the persons identified in the allegations were not included in the material available for this report. Osuolale questioned the basis for the police action, particularly the alleged intervention in a dispute which he maintained was essentially a civil disagreement over a lease.
Osuolale also claimed that he had been informed that the matter was already before a court, but maintained that none of the parties involved in the alleged litigation was claiming ownership of the property. He urged the Inspector-General of Police to investigate the incident and ensure that the parties involved refrain from further interference with the property pending the resolution of the dispute.
The petition was submitted to the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, with a call for a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident and the conduct of the police personnel involved. The outcome of the investigation and any subsequent actions taken by the police authorities remain to be seen.
Key points
- Nigercat Nigeria Limited petitions IGP over alleged property demolition and gate removal at Oduduwa Crescent, Ikeja GRA, Lagos.
- The dispute arose from a claim that the property had been leased to another person for 10 years, which was disputed by the company's chairman, Alhaji Osuolale.
- The company's ownership of the property had not been successfully challenged in court, according to Osuolale.
