Ondo State the recent protest embarked upon by the farmers in Ondo West Local Government Area? of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has accused the State Government led by Governor Rotimi Akeredolu of selling farmers’ land to foreigners across the 18 local governments of the state.
Starnews Nigeria reports that Kennedy Peretei, the Publicity Secretary of the PDP in Ondo State dropped this hint in an exclusive interview published by the Punch Newspaper on Sunday.
While reacting to the recent protest embarked upon by the farmers in Ondo West Local Government Area, Peretei said,”the drama that is unfolding in Ondo West (LGA) is a further testament to what we have always said that the (Rotimi) Akeredolu-led government had always been taking decisions that would put the community and people in Ondo State in total agony and continuously under pressure.
“It is not only in Ondo West Local Government Area, it happened about a couple of months ago. The same drama played out in Idanre where the government said they were bringing investors, depriving the indigenous community of their land, sold it (land) off, and up till now, we have not even seen the benefits of those companies they said they are bringing.
“It was the same case in Odigbo Local Government Area. Definitely, this is happening in all the places they have cocoa farms or cash crops that the government says they are bringing investors. What kind of investors are they bringing?
“Now, they go to the media to say that nobody’s land was taken and that they should discuss it. What are they discussing? Yes, the land could be government reserves, but some people have been in charge of these government reserve areas, this settlement, running them for 100 years and they will just come and deprive them, not talking of compensation.
“As far as we are concerned, this is an attempt to take over the people’s land, their ancestral land, and we are not going to accept it. I can bet with you that the community will not take it lightly with them.
“The government must be very careful, they shouldn’t think that people are fools. The people they are dealing with are not fools, all of them are educated and well-enlightened people. They cannot come and pull a ball of wool over their eyes and tell them they are bringing investors. What kind of investors? This is the situation in Ondo State and it is very pathetic”, he said.
When asked if the planned concession of the land to foreigners was not in good faith, Peretei fired back by saying,”all these arrangements about Chinese companies and other things are just lies. They are trying to buy up the land that belongs to the people. What have they done since they came? They are always taking, they have not given anything back to Ondo State people and the people are waiting eagerly to teach them a lesson.
Adding that “these lands are owned by people who have lived in these places for centuries. If you say you want to do something that will benefit me, the first thing to do is to engage me in a discussion. The first thing the government should have done is to engage the people, but it never did that before bringing in the Chinese and they came and bulldozed their lands and you want people to fold their hands. So, this is the state government’s mistake, and that’s why their actions are being suspected”.
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