LAGOS — The Iyalode Efunroye Tinubu Family in conjunction with Ewe Agbigbo Community, Idi-Oro, Agege Motor Road, Mushin, Lagos have denied any encroachment on Birch Freeman High School land/premises.

This was in reaction to Governor Babatunde Fashola’s statement last week while handing over a block of 21 classrooms to the authority of Birch Freeman High School that part of the school premises was being encroached upon.

Fashola had stated that drainage work for the school would require a recovery of every inch of land belonging to the school from squatters or occupiers.

Addressing a press conference in Lagos, yesterday, Secretary to Tinubu family, Mr. Tajudeen Tinubu, said there was no encroachment of any kind on the school, adding that it was the school that was encroaching on other people’s landed property and using government apparatus and officials to harass and intimidate the people without regard for equity and fairness.

He explained that it was the school that had exceeded its boundary by shifting its main gate from where it was originally constructed, thereby blocking road to Akobi Crescent and creating untold hardship for the residents in the area.

He said ordinarily, Iyalode Efunroye Tinubu became the titular customary owner under Native Law and Customs of Ewe Agbigbo Farmland within which the school land fell in 1834 by grant from Oloto Chieftaincy Family as represented by Oloto Baalo Oriagbaya who was the sixth Oloto of Oto, Lagos Mainland.

A portion of Iyalode Efunroye Tinubu Family land was acquired by the Federal Government of Nigeria for the purpose of building Birch Freeman High School in 1958 vide Government Notice No. 290 published in the Official Gazette No. 10 of 13th February 1958.

According to Tinubu family’s secretary, by the Federal Government acquisition notice No 290 dated 6th February 1958 and published in Gazette No 10 Vol 45 page 200 of February 13, 1958, the school’s land measured 4;841 acres but recently, the authority of the school put into circulation, an unsigned, undated and unregistered survey plan blowing the originally acquired size of 4.841 acres to 5.373 acres and made barefaced attempts to shift the pillars erected since 1958 in daylight from their original position in an adventurous and expansionist manner.

With Mr. Tajudeen Tinubu were the secretary of Ewe Agbigbo Community, Pastor Olatunji and other top officers. He told newsmen that the authority of the school, was deliberately misinforming Governor Raji Fashola on the situation of the school land. He added that all the structures being referred to as encroachments were all outside the demarcating boundaries of Birch Freeman High School as confirmed by a composite survey plan jointly prepared by Lagos State Survey Department as represented by one Mrs. Tejuosho and Tinubu Family’s surveyor, R.O.S Alabi in April 2009.

Mr. Tinubu added that the instrument of acquisition referred to in 1958 was registered at the lands registry Lagos as No 1 page 1 volume 7 by the Chief Land Officer on 30th day of July 958.