By Daud Olatunji

ABEOKUTA— The Ogun State Government has reportedly demolished a property worth N34m belonging to the National Assembly Complaints Commission, a Federal Government agency in Abeokuta, the state capital.

Gov Ibikunle Amosun

When newsmen visited the site, officials of the state government from the Ministry of Urban and Regional Planning were seeing packing the debris from the scene.

The officials did not want to speak to newsmen but one of them said that the structure did not have the approval of the state government hence the decision to pull it down.

Speaking with newsmen, the Deputy Director of the Commission, Mr. Ademola Adeyemi, described the exercise as premeditated demolition.

Adeyemi claimed that the agency had on Tuesday received two letters from the Abeokuta Central Zonal Planning Office, ordering the agency to stop work and another contravention notice.

In the letters obtained by our correspondent , the state agency said the Commission embarked on the construction of the building suspected to be without development permit.

The structure until the time of demolition was at the lintel stage.

He wondered why the state government would embark on such demolition, barely 24-hours after the Commission received letters from its agency.

Adeyemi said that the state government initially claimed that the parcel of land lying on the Federal Enclave which was set aside for all federal government agencies for developmental purposes.

He said: “Initially, they claimed that the parcel of land belongs to the state government. I informed them that the land in question belongs to the Commission and that the land had been allocated by the administration of the late Chief Olabisi Onabanjo to the Federal Government and it is being called Federal Enclave.

“The problem began when we erected a perimeter fence sometimes last year and this was pulled down by this same agency of the state government. With this development, we wrote series of letters to the Director-General of Lands and Survey.

“Other federal governments agencies on the Master Plan included Federal Audit Department, Federal Information Centre, Nigeria Bank for Commerce and Industries, among others.”

Reacting, the Permanent Secretary Physical Planning and Urban Development, Mr. Stephen Adewolu,said he was not aware of the demolition. However, he said before anyone embarks on any construction work, such person must obtain approved building plan.

“Asked those people whether they have approved building plan,” he said.