The Ondo State Government on Monday refuted the allegation that it sold a cocoa plantation and evicted farmers from their farmlands in Ilua Community in Ondo West Local Government Area of the state.
On Saturday, farmers in Ilua Community staged a protest, alleging that the government had sold their cocoa plantations and other farmlands to foreign companies.
The farmers, who came in significant numbers carrying placards, ‘This is another slavery,’ ‘We say no to the destruction of our cocoa farms,’ ‘No farmers, no nation’, ‘We don’t want to steal, farming is our job’, ‘Aketi should not sell our lands to Chinese,’ ‘They should leave us here to farm, we have nowhere to go,’ among others.
The farmers alleged that the state government had given them an eviction notice, ordering them to leave their farms in all 20 villages in the area by the end of the year. They also alleged that government officials had threatened to forcibly remove them if they did not comply.
The traditional ruler of the Ilua Community, Oba Olalani Ibidapo, said that some people had come to their villages and put up signs that the state government had sold their farmlands and villages to Chinese and Indian companies.
He said, “They said the government has issued a notice that we should quit our farms and villages because the companies wanted to move in and take over our farms and villages.
“We have been here for over 100 years and we are here farming, no other things. I have more than 19 villages under me here, Ilua, Laoso, Adejori, Logunofe, Keseomi, Obadore, Obakele, Ilua 2, Kangidi, Oloruntedo, Abayemisi and Magbaralewon just to mention a few.”
“We heard suddenly that we should move out unexpectedly. Where are we going to go? Look at our people, no work. We have graduates among us here, but since there’s no job, they ventured into farming. We are protesting against this policy and we also appeal to our Governor, Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Akeredolu to please consider our situation here.”
Also in his comment, Akinbami Philip, the Chairman of Youths of Laje community, Laoso District, Ondo West, appealed to the government to revoke the policy and order
“We have graduates who have farms here, we want the government to leave us so that we would continue working on our farms. This is where we feed our families. The government asked us to pay money and we are faithful to it. Every year, the government gave us payment advice, sometimes N3 million and we did pay.”
The Senior Special Assistant to the governor on Agriculture and Agribusiness, Mr Akin Olotu, said that the government was not displacing villagers, especially those occupying free areas in the state. He said that no sensible government would displace anyone in a free area.
Olotu in a statement said, “We want to look into the matter, I will invite their representatives, we will sit down together and look at a win-win situation and see how we can accommodate their interests in what we are doing.
“Governance is about the people. So when we see what is on the ground, we will know what to do. Our little investigation shows that where they are is even out of where those people are coming to work.”
“So maybe it’s anticipatory action, that may be. We will send government surveyors there to confirm the precise location, If anybody is affected, we will look at whether it’s a government reserve because nobody came to us in the office and I think that should be the first thing to do, to inform us about what is going on there.”