By Adepote Arowojobe
Some residents of TOMEC Estate in Ikorodu, on Tuesday appealed to Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, to urgently intervene in a face off with its Local Government Development Authority.
They made the appeal in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.
NAN reports that the TOMEC Community Development Association (CDA), is made up of four estates, including T.O.S Benson, Toma 1, Toma 2 and Coker.
NAN also reports that the face off between residents of the estate and the LCDA Chairman, Mr Lanre Sulaimon, is for constructing an events centre by the only access road to the entrance of the four estates.
The CDA Chairman, Mr Oladapo Bello, alleged that the LCDA chairman invaded the community with hoodlums to forcefully open one of their gates to outsiders.
According to him, more than 80 per cent of occupants of the over 25 -year old estate are civil servants and retirees of Lagos State Government, who now live in fear due to vulnerability to insecurity after the invasion.
“I was called that hoodlums and area boys came to attack and invade our estate with dangerous weapons.
“However, they also alleged that the council chairman was with them.
“One of the security men also alleged that they were attacked, while one of them was taken away by the hoodlums.
“We appeal to Gov. Sanwo-Olu to set up a committee to look into the matter, so that people will no longer live in fear,” he said.
Mr Muftau Tawakalitu, a 67- year old resident of the estate, urged the governor to immediately set up a panel of enquiry to mediate and find a lasting solution to the disagreement between the council and the community.
Tawakalitu alleged that he was beaten up by the hoodlums, “my eyes turned red, till now, I have pains in my chest”.
“This disagreement is simply over a gate we contributed our resources to build for security.
“When we had issues on this same gate years ago, the then governor, Babatunde Fashola, came to see things himself and directed that the back gate be permanently locked for security reasons.
Also Mrs Folashade Bashua, a retiree and resident of Coker Estate, appealed to Sanwo-Olu, to caution the management of the council, adding that residents no longer sleep with two eyes closed.
Responding, the LCDA chairman denied attacking any resident of the estate nor did he go there with hoodlums.
He told NAN that the problem started when the council decided to build an events centre, to generate additional internal revenue on a portion of land owned by the council.
According to him, the road is a public road and cannot be used by the estate alone.
He explained that the only access road, which is the estate gate is supposed to be for the public use but was always locked, in contravention of the Lagos State Laws on gated streets.
The chairman said he went to the estate to inspect the access road with members of his management team, who were trying to protect him against being mobbed by the estate residents at the time.
“I came inside the estate with my management team and the security men challenged us at the gate, asking us to pay.
“They usually collect toll fees from everybody including the council officials without permission from the council.”
“I told them the council could no longer tolerate erecting of illegal gates without permission, so I called the police.
“When i received their petition sometime ago, i called for a meeting, because I wanted to ask them to register their streets with the council but they never showed up.”
(NAN)
