Farmers and residents of Ajogbo Akia Community in the Ado-Odo/Ota Local Government Area of Ogun State have appealed to the state government to urgently provide relief to families whose farmlands and agricultural plantations were allegedly destroyed by landgrabbers and impostors.
The community made the appeal on Tuesday during a press conference held at the secretariat of the state chapter of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Abeokuta.
The community had earlier submitted copies of its petition to the state House of Assembly and the Governor’s Office at Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta.
Addressing journalists, the Baale of Ajogbo Akia, Dr Oluwasegun Adebiyi, who was represented by the community secretary, Chief Timothy Olamide, said the alleged destruction had left many residents without their major source of livelihood.
Adebiyi said the community, which he described as predominantly agrarian, had depended on farming for generations, adding that crops including cassava, yam, maize and okra, as well as mature palm trees and other plantations, were allegedly destroyed.
He said, “The damage goes far beyond the land itself. Our people have lost cassava, yam, maize, okra and other crops. Valuable palm trees and agricultural plantations of over 50 to 100 years have all been destroyed.
“For a community whose principal source of livelihood is agriculture, this means that we have lost virtually everything we depend upon to survive.”
Adebiyi said the alleged destruction had affected the income and food security of several families, noting that farmers who had invested time and resources in their farms were suddenly left without means of sustenance.
According to him, the community had reported the matter to the police at the Ado-Odo Police Division and commended the Ogun State Commissioner of Police for the public statement issued on the matter.
He, however, urged the police to intensify efforts to prevent further alleged attacks and destruction in the community.
“We thank the Ogun State Commissioner of Police for their press release and want them to do more in terms of ensuring that the landgrabbers don’t continue to perpetuate mayhem and dehumanisation of our people,” he said.
The community leader disclosed that the community had also instituted legal proceedings over the land dispute, stressing that the residents were committed to pursuing the matter through lawful means.
He stressed that the community was not asking the government to interfere with or prejudge the case, but to provide humanitarian assistance to affected residents while the judicial process continued.
“We have lost our farms. We have lost our crops. We have lost our livelihood. We have lost virtually every means of sustaining our families. We need urgent relief. We need humanitarian assistance. We need support to rebuild our lives.
“Our immediate concern is humanitarian and economic. While we seek justice over our ordeal, we need to live. We need to return to normalcy. We have taken the matter before the court because we believe in the rule of law. We will not take the law into our own hands.
“We simply ask that while the judicial process continues, our people should not be left without food, income and hope. Justice may take time, but hunger cannot wait,” he said.
The community therefore appealed to the Ogun State Government to provide emergency cash, food and livelihood support, agricultural inputs and assistance to enable affected farmers to return to farming.
It also called for support for displaced or severely affected families and an independent assessment and documentation of the agricultural losses suffered by the community.
He appealed to the state Governor, Dapo Abiodun, and relevant government agencies to send a delegation to the community to assess the situation firsthand.
The community also lamented the lack of basic infrastructure in Ajogbo Akia, saying residents had lived for years without electricity, adequate public road infrastructure, a government-owned public school and a primary healthcare facility.
Adebiyi said the community had written to the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company and the Rural Electrification Agency in Abuja over its electricity challenges but had yet to receive a solution.
He said, “Our community has historically had limited government presence and basic public infrastructure. For generations, our people have lived without electricity supply, government public road infrastructure serving the community, a government-owned public school and a government health clinic or primary healthcare facility.
“We need government presence in Ajogbo Akia. Whenever there is election time, we perform our civic responsibility.”
Despite the infrastructure deficit, he said residents had continued to contribute their resources towards the development of the community, particularly because farming remained the main source of livelihood for many families.
The community urged the government to urgently visit Ajogbo Akia, assess the alleged losses and provide assistance to affected farmers and families.
“Our message is simple. We are not asking government to decide our case. We are asking government to save our people from economic devastation while the case is before the court,” the community pleaded.