3 November 2009
A member of the Lagos House of Assembly, Mr. Ipoola Omisore, has decried the activities of land speculators who claim to be indigenes of the state and intimidate landed property owners.
He alleged that such people, known as 'omoniles,' extorted money from landlords and threatened to demolish their structures, if they failed to meet their demands.
Omisore made the allegations last Sunday in Lagos in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
Omisore, the Chairman of the House Committee on Information, Strategy and Security, accused the "Omoniles" of demanding money from landlords at every stage of their property development.
'Every corner of Lagos, particularly the undeveloped areas, are facing the problem of 'omoniles,' he said.
The lawmaker noted with regret that the 'omoniles' were subjecting some landlords to obey their directive to either repurchase their property or lose them to the group, which they would resell to other buyers.
"The Lagos State Government and security agencies must sit down together and resolve this very serious problem," he said.
Omisore stressed the need for the government to resolve the problem before it embarked on its central land registration.
He noted that there were laws against the act, and urged the residents of the state to resist the omoniles' intimidation and exploitation, by reporting their activities to the police.
The Chairman of the House Committee on Judiciary, Mr. Babatunde Ogala, urged the police to go into action and enforce the law by stopping the criminal activities of the group.
He told NAN that it was criminal for the group to destroy or vandalise a landed property because their owners did not pay them illegal fees.
He also urged landed property owners to ensure that they purchased their property through due process, to enable them to effectively protect them.
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