Indigenes of Ogbomoso in Oyo State have petitioned Governor Seyi Makinde over an alleged plan by the state government to allocate the Ogbomoso Farm Settlement to private developers.
Drivetvnews gathered that the indigenes, under the aegis of Egbe Omo Ogbomoso Parapo, rejected the alleged move, describing the farm settlement as a vital heritage and major source of livelihood for generations of residents.
The petition was signed by the group’s Chairman, Prince Aderemi Olude, and Secretary, Johnson Adekunle, with copies sent to relevant federal and state authorities, including the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Federal Ministry of Lands and Urban Development, the Inspector General of Police, Oyo State Commissioner of Police and the Soun of Ogbomoso, Oba Afolabi Olaoye.
The group said the land was established as a farm settlement in the early 1960s and urged the state government to revitalise it rather than hand it over to property developers.
According to the petitioners, the alleged allocation would amount to destroying a legacy associated with the former Premiers of the defunct Western Region, Chief Obafemi Awolowo and Chief Samuel Akintola.
The association said its investigations indicated that the alleged plan was no longer mere speculation, claiming that some farm settlers had confirmed recent activities on the land.
It further alleged that government surveyors had begun making incursions into the settlement.
The group described the farm settlement as a “commonwealth” that had sustained generations and insisted that the people of Ogbomoso would not accept its allocation to private investors.
The petitioners called on Governor Makinde to halt any alleged plan to transfer the land to developers and instead preserve and revitalise the agricultural settlement.
