Land grabbers in Lagos, commonly known as Omo-onile, may be about to be hit hard by the State Government, which has set up a taskforce to curtail their activities in various parts of the state.
The State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Adeniji Kazeem, announced the new measure taken by the state government on Monday. According to him, anyone who uses the threat of arms or physical threat to force people off property which they have acquired legitimately will be treated as a criminal by the state, in accordance with the law.
The Attorney General referred to sections 52, 53 and 281 of the criminal law of Lagos State. He said that section 281 lists land as one of the things capable of being stolen, and that sections 52 and 53 of the law also states that forceful entry into and possession of land in a manner likely to cause a breach in public peace is punishable by a two-year jail term.
Commercial activities in Lagos have been affected by land grabbers, who have targeted businesses and property owners and exacted illegal dues from them- a phenomenon hinted at by Mr. Kazeem.
“Furthermore, the need to protect investors and maintain law and order also led to the setting up of the committee. This by implication will encourage the verification of legal claims through litigation rather than resorting to violence”, the commissioner said.
The Lagos State Government’s website lists the contact details of the committee as follows: Phone numbers 09096667123 and 09020085005; email omonileTF@lagosstate.gov.ng.
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