Chaos erupted on Tuesday when thugs launched an attack on the palace of the Oba-elect of Isheri Oke, Jamiu Odunsi, to express their disapproval against the execution of a court sentence in the community located in the Ikosi Local Council Development Area. /isheri. of the State of Lagos.
During the invasion, the thugs, who were reportedly armed with weapons such as guns, machetes, rocks and bottles, attacked and injured people in the palace, smashed the window and CCTV installed in the building, and also vandalized vehicles. parked on the premises.
Our correspondent, who visited the site, gathered from eyewitnesses that the thugs, while voicing their grievances against the ongoing execution of the court sentence in the community, initially gathered at the main gate of the palace to stage a protest around 10 a.m. A.M.
Thereafter, the protest turned into chaos as some of the thugs attacked the palace and people on the premises, while others protested in the surrounding streets and set bonfires on the road.
Speaking to our correspondent, an eyewitness, Tajudeen Odunsi, said that he and the Oba-chosen’s family members and guests were holding a meeting at the palace when the thugs invaded the premises.
He said, “The thugs who attacked us numbered more than 100; stones and bottles were thrown at us while we were in the compound with the Oba-chosen, Jamiu Odunsi. To escape the attack, some of us entered the main building.
“But when the thugs, who also came with weapons, observed our movements, they forced their way into the palace, attacked and injured five of our people, damaged vehicles and windows in the building, and stole some property, including phones. CCTV footage in the palace recorded everything; It was when the security agents arrived who fled.”
The secretary of the Cacique Olofin’s Family, Akintunde Kudoro, when recounting the circumstances of the attack, said that the invasion of the palace was initiated by people who were against the execution of the sentence that an Appeals Court issued in favor of his family. on March 16, 2022.
He said: “When we received the sentence, we published in newspapers and wrote letters to people notifying them of the sentence, but no one responded.
“So, we decided to go to court to do the foreclosure and collect our land for ourselves and the court has to approve the order for the sheriff to go and execute and the sheriff went through the Commissioner of Police who gave them the police who went with them to execution.
“The bailiff and the sheriff came from Ikeja to carry out the sentence; they started around 7am and while we were in a meeting in the palace, those who were against the execution led the thugs to attack us at around 10am.
“The sheriff and the bailiff together with the police were the ones who executed, but they attacked us because they knew that we are the creditors of the sentence.”
A true certified copy of the judgment with file CA/L/362/2010 and the notice posted on the community buildings that supposedly triggered the protest, was seen by our correspondent.
The notice read in part: “The statutory right of occupation of the Family of Caciques Olofin de Isheri (hereinafter: “the Family”) over the parcel of land of 151,656 hectares and being Section 5 in the composite survey plan No. ADAKS /01/ LA/2006 dated February 6, 2006, was confirmed by the court.
“The appeal arose out of Case No. ID/1664/99 in the Ikeja Division of the High Court of Lagos State. Unfortunately, this parcel of land, which you occupy, falls squarely within said 151,656 hectares. Therefore, according to said ruling, this property rightfully belongs to the family.
“Consequently, said sentence has been executed this day April 11, 2023 by the bailiffs of the High Court of the State of Lagos. The family has no interest in exercising contradictory action against anyone, except those who wish to act to the detriment of the interests of the family, as stated in the aforementioned judgment.”
A community resident, who did not want her name used in print for security reasons, said: “The fight that happened today also happened about three years ago. The land that people bought before some people’s ancestors were born, some people are now coming together to demand that they buy back the land, is that possible? That’s what caused the fight.”
Reacting to the development, the Oshorun of Isheri Oke, Saheed Olayinka-Pasida, said that the sentence being carried out was before the Supreme Court.
He said: “We are not part of the lawsuit; here is Isheri and Isheri belongs to Oshorun and this matter is already before the Supreme Court as we have filed a stay of execution on the matter. We were waiting for the court to decide, but around 5 am I received a call that about 100 children were pasting paper because they had a trial.”
However, the Baale of Isheri-Oke, chief Albert Bankole, said he was informed on Monday night that some people claiming to have a trial were planning an attack on the community.
He said: “We tried to inform the DPO but we couldn’t see it. This morning, we heard that the thugs had started attacking some areas.
“Our people came out and resisted them so that no more could enter. It was later, when people were burning tires on the highway and no one could get in or out, that the DPO came out and addressed them before the thugs left.”
Meanwhile, the confrontation forced banks and some businesses to paralyze their operations in the community.
During a visit to GTBank in the area, one of our correspondents observed how customers expressed their disappointment at seeing the bank closed.
“We were opening the bank this morning to start operations when some people came with police officers and said they had a court order to take this place. They sent all our staff and customers and we had to close the bank,” said a bank official. However, after the police restored normalcy to the area, State Police Commissioner Idowu Owohunwa, during an on-site assessment in the community, visited the Oba-elect and Oshorun of Isheri Oke, Saheed Olayinka- passed
Addressing reporters after the visits, Owohunwa said there had been a rape and those involved in the rape would be held responsible, adding that the State Criminal Investigation Department had been ordered to take over the investigation.
“We are still reviewing, but the initial attempt by the police was to restore the peace that has now been achieved. We have identified those who are directly involved in the violence and it is assured that from this moment that the SCID has taken charge of the investigation, the process of apprehending and prosecuting them has begun”, said Owohunwa.
