A Lagos community, Isashi-Ibeshe in Ikorodu, has accused a dredging firm, Glossands Limited, of encroaching on the rights of other companies involved in a project in the area. The community also accused the company of operating in the area for over two decades without any meaningful benefit to the people or their environment.

Parties involved in the disagreement are Glossands Limited, a new entrant, Eva & Kings, Badewa and Bima dredging firms. During a protest on Monday, some youths from Ibeshe, led by some chiefs, urged Glossands Limited to relocate its dredging equipment and stop encroaching on other dredgers’ space.

The Otun Asashi of Isashi community, Rafiu Aregbesola, told journalists that the firm flouted the rules when it ran its dredger across Eva & Kings’ waterfront and has snubbed all interventions to vacate the disputed spot.

According to Aregbesola, after the traditional authority’s several efforts failed to persuade Glossands to shift ground and allow the other legal firms some space to operate alongside, the Olubeshe-in-Council, exercising the community’s right under Section 100 of the federal mining law, demanded that Glossands moved its equipment as a matter of urgency.

In their letter of September 28, 2015 to Glossands, entitled, “Urgent Demand For Compliance,” which was signed by over seven Ibeshe chiefs and copied the Director of Mines, Inspectorate Department, MMSD; Mines Officer, Mines Inspectorate Department, Lagos; MD, Nigerian Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA); Assistant Inspector General of Police, Zone 2, Lagos, and the Inspector General of Police, among others, the community sought understanding and cooperation among the dredgers.

As host community of the mineral title in Isashi-Ibeshe, Ikorodu area, you would appreciate the critical role we are to play for peace and orderliness,” the letter read in part. “We feel slighted if our fatherly responsibility is snubbed by any of our guests and we would react appropriately.

Recently, our traditional ruling council, upon a complaint by Eva & Kings Nigeria Limited, delegated four of our chiefs to inspect the coastline. They confirmed to us that your company placed its dredger and other equipment on the waterfront of Eva & Kings. In our investigation, we found out that Eva & Kings has authentic approval for the coordinates in the same place you positioned your dredger (Quarry Lease No: 021189).

Since we want peace in our community, we therefore demand the immediate repositioning of your dredger to your own area so as not to disturb the operations of Eva & Kings. Don’t be an enforcer in our community and its environs because that can lead to a breakdown of law and order. Please, if our demand is not respected, we might be forced to stop all dredging activities.”

Nevertheless, the community leaders complained that Glossands was not impacting the community and its people positively in any way, adding that it had employed only one indigene in its over two decades of operation. In view of this, they said, they would provide equal opportunity to competitors and would not allow them to be stifled out of business.

Meanwhile, the Managing Director of Eva and Kings, Ukah Emmanuel Onyewuchi, alleged that the documents being paraded by Glossands over the lease title were forged and that whatever recent agreement it signed with the community was not with the appropriate authorities.

However, a senior official of Glossands argued that the other dredgers were operating illegally, and that Eva & Kings had always encroached on Glossands’ licensed cadastral units without restraint.

The source, pleading anonymity, said: “We are the licensed miners for that area and have been operating in that coastline for over 20 years. Before now, we have been paying all royalties to the community. For instance, we have donated power transformers, offered scholarships and jobs to some indigenes.”

Displaying documents to prove an ongoing payment of N600,000 per month to the community as demanded, the official affirmed: “We have a Memorandum of Understanding with the indigenes till 2017. Why is the other company taking its case to the indigenes and not the government?”

The official wondered why the community met with and entered an agreement with Glossands over the weekend and affirmed the subsisting agreement, only to organise a protest against the firm on Monday.

When contacted, the Chief Miner at the NIWA Lagos office, Akonji Nathaniel, simply referred inquiries on the issue to the Ministry of Mines, Abuja, which he said has been handling the matter.