General
How Skye Bank Rendered 3000 Lagos Residents Homeless
By The Witness Newspaper
Skye Bank Plc and its subsidiary, Skye Trustees Limited, are currently enmeshed in fresh controversy following the demolition of more than 200 houses at the instance of the two organisations in Lagos, THE WITNESS reports.
While the President Muhammadu Buhari administration is striving so hard to achieve its target of delivering affordable housing to the people, the Tokunbo Abiru-led financial institution and its subsidiary on Thursday, July 26th 2018 visited hardship on the Glorious Villa Community in Ibeju Lekki Local Government Area of Lagos State which housed over 3000 inhabitants when they demolished the properties.
THE WITNESS reliably learnt that trouble started when Skye Bank was discreetly sold a large expanse of land allegedly belonging to about 55 families by four of the families in Abule Parapo Phase 2, Awoyaya area of Ibeju Lekki.
It was further gathered that after winning the land dispute case from initial land grabbers, another set of family unit had three years earlier sold some plots located behind the famous Greenspring International School for the sum of N1.5 million each to the occupants who are now homeless after the destruction which gave them no chance to salvage their belongings.
Unknown to these family units, the four family units had also obtained a court judgment behind the scene and went ahead to sell the entire 200.184 hectares of land plus the court judgment to Skye Bank and Skye Trustees Limited which rushed to the Lagos State government through high-powered officers for the authentication of the lands in their company name.
Skye Bank, THE WITNESS learnt, reached out to the lawyers of the property owners to come over for ratification and demanded that they should pay sums of money ranging between N4 million and N8 million for the ratification of each of the plots in contention.
The property owners had suggested further negotiation and had reached a compromise with the bank, but Skye Bank allegedly went ahead with the demolition of the properties with the backing of about 300 armed operatives from various security outfits that harassed the residents and seized their belongings including phones and cameras.
The Skye Bank-ordered demolition has thrown the residents of the area into a state of distress and agony as majority of them now take refuge in uncompleted buildings outside of the community. Others have resorted to talking solace under the bridges around the area while some have moved in with their relations as squatters pending when luck will smile at them to acquire new accommodations.
Affected residents, most of who are customers of the Skye Bank have been counting their post-demolition losses, lamenting the suffering they are forced to go through.
“This pain is too much to bear, and to think that it comes from a bank I hitherto held so dear is worrying to me,” lamented a woman who did not provide her name.
Mr Wise Iyanla while narrating his ordeal to THE WITNESS correspondent said: “I, my friends, my comrades and my families, we are closing all our accounts in Skye Bank. This is a trying moment but we will win this battle!
“As a young man in the corporate world, I strove harder to do some expensive things. One of the things I did was to strive to build a bungalow here in Ibeju Lekki axis (Awoyaya) and my land was properly acquired from the legitimate owners who originally acquired the landed properties from their forefathers as inheritance.
“All of a sudden, just last month here, I was at work when I received a WhatsApp message from a co-landlord, informing me that our properties built with our hard-earned sweat were being demolished by Skye Bank and their agent, Lekki Gardens Estate Limited with a battalion of security personnel to protect their heinous action.
“What can I say as a young father and hustler? I said to my co-landlord, man can never be hurt. What took us years to stand, as struggling young Nigerians, were demolished in minutes.
“The most painful aspect of the story is the fact that our buildings were demolished in error because there was no court judgment that warranted the destruction of our properties and I doubt that the IG was aware of the illegal police officers outing during the criminal and malicious destruction of our properties and now that it is established, 10 billion for the accounts is feasible.”
Another affected resident, a 64-year-old widow and retired civil servant, Mrs Oyekunle Azeez, said ever since the incident, she has been living in a church and her blood pressure had risen. “In tears, the elderly woman said: I laboured so hard before I retired to build this house, how have I offended the bank and their directors? This was all I had. Why do they want to send me to an early grave?” Mrs Azeez lamented.
The lawyers representing Glorious Villa Community Development Association, Reagan Nzeteh & Co. has written Lekki Gardens demanding the sum of N10 billion from Skye Bank Plc and Skye Trustees Ltd for what it called trespass to land, willful/criminal/malicious damage of its client’s properties and illegal demolition of the properties in Abule Parapo Phase 2 by the two organisations. They have also threatened to sue the trio if the money is not paid within a stipulated period of time.
In the same vein, the inspector general of police has been petitioned regarding the illegal use of over 300 police officers in the operation.
Efforts by our reporter to reach the management of Skye Bank and Skye Trustees for their angle to the development proved futile as enquiries sent to the bank were not responded to as at press time.
Culled from The Witness Newspaper
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Department of State Services (DSS) has arraigned the former Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Mr Abubakar Malami, and his son, Mr Abudlazizz Malami, on a five-count charge of abetting terrorism financing and illegal possession of firearms.
They were arraigned before Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court in Abuja, where they pleaded not guilty to the charges.
In the charge, the former AGF was accused of knowingly abetting terrorism financing by refusing to prosecute terrorism financiers whose case files were brought to his office as the AGF in the last administration for prosecution.
Recall that the secret police had arrested Mr Malami, shortly after his release from Kuje prison in Abuja more than two weeks ago after Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja granted him and two others bail in the sum of N500 million in another case involving the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Mr Malami and his son are also accused by the DSS of engaging in conduct in preparation to commit act of terrorism by having in their possession and without licence, a Sturm Magnum 17-0101 firearm, 16 Redstar AAA 5’20 live rounds of Cartridges and 27 expended Redstar AAA 5’20 Cartridges.
His arrest in January followed weeks of reports of surveillance by the secret police in front of the prison facility since the time Mr Malami, his wife and son were remanded there over the money laundering charges.
As per reports, Mr Malami had gathered that he would be picked up upon regaining his temporary freedom and so decided to wait out the DSS. However, after his eventual emergence, the operatives took the ex-AGF into detention again.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA) has initiated an inter-agency partnership with the Centre for Rural Development (CERUD) to establish the Coastal Community First Responder Programme (CCFRP).
The first responder programme is aimed at promoting safe and secure transportation across Lagos waterways.
The initiative was unveiled during a meeting between a LASWA delegation and officials of the Ministry of Local Government, Chieftaincy Affairs and Rural Development at the secretariat in Alausa.
Leading the LASWA team, Mr Olademeji Shittu said the programme is designed to reduce fatalities and material losses on Lagos waterways, particularly in hard-to-reach coastal communities.
According to Mr Shittu, the CCFRP will focus on empowering community volunteers through targeted capacity building for sustainable rural development, while also equipping them with relevant skills that can enhance employability within the maritime sector.
He noted that trained volunteers will serve as community-based first responders, working in close collaboration with LASWA to strengthen search and rescue operations.
Providing the rationale for the programme, Mr Shittu highlighted the recurring cases of marine incidents and fatalities on Lagos waterways, often worsened by delayed emergency response in remote coastal areas.
He explained that residents of these communities are usually the first on the scene during accidents, making it necessary to formalise their role through structured training and partnerships.
He added that the collaboration with CERUD will help create a sustainable framework that aligns community development with safety and emergency response, while fostering a sense of ownership and responsibility among coastal residents.
According to a statement, the Coastal Community First Responder Programme is expected to enhance emergency preparedness on Lagos waterways, improve response times during marine incidents, and contribute to safer water transportation across the state.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) have suspended their planned protest in the Federal Capital Territory and instructed workers under the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) to return to their duties with immediate effect.
The directive followed an overnight engagement involving labour leaders, the Minister of the FCT, Mr Nyesom Wike, and members of the Senate Committee on the FCT.
The meeting, which began late on Monday, stretched into the early hours of Tuesday, culminating in an agreement that led to the unions’ decision to halt the protest action and restore normal activities across FCTA offices.
This comes after Justice Emmanuel Subilim of the National Industrial Court issued an interim order restraining the NLC, TUC, and three others from embarking on any form of industrial action or protest.
Ruling on an ex-parte application filed by the Minister of the FCT and the FCT Administration, Justice Subilim granted an interim order restraining the 1st to 5th respondents and their privies or agents from embarking on strike pending the hearing of the motion on notice, also ordering the 5th-9th defendants who are security agencies to ensure no break down of law and order.
The ex-parte motion, which was filed by the counsel to Mr Wike and the FCTA, Ogwu Onoja, submitted that the Chairman of the FCT council had sent a message of mobilization to members and affiliated unions for a mass protest scheduled for February 3.
This move, he noted, was in violation of the orders of court, adding that after the ruling of the court on January 27, the order of the court was served on the defendants, same day the NLC and TUC issued a statement to all affiliated unions to intensify and sustain the strike.
The statement jointly signed by both unions directed that the striking workers should resume the strike as the unions’ counsel, Mr Femi Falana, has filed an appeal against the interlocutory ruling.
He further pointed out that With the statement, JUAC issued a circular directing all employees to continue the strike.
This position they say is aimed at causing break down of law and order in the Nations capital.
The court subsequently adjourned the case until February 10 for hearing.
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