The Kwara State Government has explained why it seized a land acquired by former Senate Leader in the Second Republic, late Dr. Abubakar Olusola Saraki.
It can be recalled that the state government said the land was acquired illegally, a claim which Saraki, former president of the Senate, had refuted.
Okay.ng reports that the building on the land known as ‘Ile Arugbo’ was demolished in the early hours of Thursday.
However, Ibrahim Salman, the Director-General of the Bureau of Lands, in a statement said there was no evidence of payment for the land.
“The entire land was acquired in the 1970s for Overriding Public Interest and same was initially designed to host the phase II of the State Secretariat. The construction of the said State Secretariat Phase II was actually commenced and it was at superstructure level before same was abandoned,” the statement read.
“The entire land was later redesigned in the 1980s for the construction of a Civil Service Clinic, State Secretariat, and a parking lot for both the Clinic and the State Secretariat.
“The Clinic was subsequently constructed in 1982, while the remaining plots of land were conceived for the expansion of the Clinic into a full-fledged Hospital.
“The dream of the State Government was stalled when part of the land slated for the parking lot was spuriously allocated in principle to one Asa Investment for commercial purpose.
“From available records, the allocation was not based on a formal application, nor application forms filled; there was no evidence of payment for the said allocation as stipulated in the letter of allocation in principle and consequently, no right of occupancy was ever issued to the Company.
“Furthermore, in flagrant abuse of the allocation terms, the company took possession of the land and constructed what is today known as “Ile Arugbo” on part of the land that was designed as a parking lot and later conceived to host the expansion of the Civil Service Clinic into a full-fledged Hospital.”
