24th September, 2017
By Kazeem Ugbodaga
A 71-years-old widow, Mrs Edna Osaghae has petitioned the Lagos State Governor, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode over alleged plots by some officers in the office of the State’ Surveyor General to illegally take over her property in Magodo area of the State.
According to the petition dated September 20, 2017, a copy of which was made available to newsmen on Sunday, the widow said troubled started when she applied to regularise the title of the property after the demise of her husband and two favourable judgements of Lagos High Court and Supreme Court.
Osaghae said she had been living in the said property situated at No 2, Roberts Street, Magodo, G.R.A, Phase 2 for the past 33 years having purchased it with her late husband in 1975.
The petitioner, who attached the survey plan of the property dated October 23, 1985 and the said two judgments to the petition, alleged that some people with vested interest were working in concert with government officials to wrestle the property from her, and urged the governor to come to her aid.
She said: “Surprisingly, certain people with vested interest are trying to wrestle my property from me because some people have promised them gratification and thus they are hell bent on pushing me out of my house or subdividing it for their illegal personal interest.
“I also gathered from the Office of the Surveyor General that based on my request to regularise my title with a Certificate of Occupancy (Cof O) for the property, that there is a plan to subdivide my property without considering the previous decision of both Land Bureau and New Town Development that the subject site should be redesigned which is in line with the directive of Hon Justice Adefope-Okojie in Suit No ID/1261/96.
“Be it noted that in the last one year or thereabouts, officers from the Surveyor General’s office have visited my house three good times, the third of which was illegally done in my absence as I was neither notified of their visit nor did they book any appointment with me, all in the name of surveying my property which is covered by an already existing survey plan of Magodo scheme and I think they are using this as a delay tactics in a bid to take over my property, subdivide it and delay my CofO which I have applied for almost two years now with nothing forthcoming nor any reasonable explanation for the delay,” Osaghae said.
She, however, appealed on compassionate ground to Ambode as a peace loving man, to use his good office to implement both the Supreme Court judgment and the High Court judgment which are all in her favour.
“Your Excellency sir, with your good work in Lagos State, I want to appeal that being in occupation for about 33 years of which legally I am entitled to the property and the two judgments equally in my favour, that the CofO which has been under processing be granted to me for the Plot 4 Block 74,” Osaghae said.