Hon Wale Raji, Representing Epe Federal Constituency, in Lagos State, has the intervention of the National Assembly in the ongoing land dispute between the Nigerian Army and the Iraye Community in Epe Division.
Raji made this known while addressing newsmen in Iraye, on Sunday.
He said that the intervention became necessary to avert any unscrupulous conflict that might ensue between the community people and the Nigerian Army.
The federal lawmaker told newsmen that recently, the people of Iraye community under his watch reported the case of Army encroaching into the community lands unjustly, hence, requires my intervention on the said matter.
Raji assured Iraye residents of swift intervention in settling the land feud.
“I appeal to both parties, the Nigeria Army and Iraye residents to maintain status quo while the National Assembly intervenes to ensure peaceful coexistence of all parties.
“I do not want a repeat of the Epe community clash with Nigeria Army in 1975 again. Therefore, all parties involved should sheath their swords as the matter will be settled in earnest, ” he said.
Raji declared that he would bring up the matter in the National Assembly to unravel the issues between both parties involved to avoid unrest.
Also, Chief Odesegun Anwoju, Baale of Iraye, applauded Hon. Wale Raji for his quick response and swift intervention in the community matter.
“I appreciate our foremost and listening honorable for giving the needed attention to community issues, ” he said.
Anwoju appealed to the Nigerian Army to halt encroachment into community lands and maintain the status quo of the lands given to the military by the community.
He added that the Iraye community released over 71 acres of land to the military for their operations, therefore, they should maintain the landscape and stop illegal encroachment of community lands to avoid community clashes.
Similarly, Chief Kazeem Anwoju, a community leader, said that there are documents on the fallout of the land space given to the Nigerian Army in the Iraye neighborhood.
He said that several community leaders in Epe Division had in the past intervened into the Nigerian Army landscape matter and adviced them to maintain their land.
He called on the Nigerian Army not to encroach into community lands anymore but maintain their own space.
He, therefore, appealed to both the federal and state government to provide a lasting solution to the issues of the land before its goes out of hand.
Earlier, Mr. Gbenga Ibrahim, a youth leader in the community, narrated his ordeal on his unpalatable experiences with the Nigeria Army at Iraye land.
He said that he and his other residents received the beating of their lives while working on their ongoing construction building at the Iraye site.
“We were tortured, beaten, and molested by the Nigerian Army. They refrained and intimidated us from coming to the land area again, adding that the lands belong to Nigerian Army.
“I appeal to the government to intervene as a matter of urgency before it resulted into community clashes, ” he said.
Furthermore, Landlords and residents of Iraye, in Eredo Local Council Development Area of Lagos State, have lamented the continued presence of soldiers in the community.
Our reporter gathered that soldiers stormed the community sometime in September 2022 and started notifying residents of their intention to demolish property in the Lenuwa, Ayeni and Adeyoruwa areas.
The soldiers were said to have arrested no fewer than 10 persons, who were reportedly subjected to different forms of torture.
Chief Segun Anwoju, Baale of iraye, while addressing the newsmen said that he visited some of the marked houses up for demolition on Sunday.
He added that the Nigerian Army did not have any land in the area.
He said that, “Historically, Iraye-Oke is one of the communities that make up Epe but we are under Eredo LCDA.
According to him, Soldiers came into Epe in 1970 and built their barracks there. In 1975, the soldiers left Epe and part of their barracks is now the LASU campus.
“But about some years ago, the soldiers returned to Epe, left their barracks and started encroaching on Iraye community land.
“They have been harassing and beating our people. As I speak with you, the soldiers are in Iraye community, fighting our people over our land.
“We never had any agreement with them; we are sad and we want the government and Nigerians to help us out, ” he said.
He added that, the Nigerian Army do not have land in our community; they never bought any portion of land from us and never asked us about land but just came suddenly and started doing what is not right on our land.
Anwoju said that there was a need for government to restore normalcy in the community.
Mr Gbenga Ibrahim, an indigene, who were among the residents that the soldiers arrested, tortured and molested in various ways.
In September 2022, Ibrahim said that, he and a few family members were working on a plot of land in the neighborhood when suddenly soldiers stormed the scene and began inquiring as to what we were doing on their property.
Surprisingly, they started beating us and forcing us to perform frog jumps while rolling around on the ground. We were made to roll around on the ground for hours while they took all of our cell phones.
We were later taken to their barracks, where we were made to perform push-ups on hot granite after being tied to a truck driven by a contractor.
When one of our uncles arrived to secure our release, they later gave us cutlasses to start cutting the grasses which we cut over one acre of land before we were been release.
“All these abnormalities need to stop before the community took their revenge on their rightful properties, ” he said.
