Residents of Fere and Oniporogun communities in Obafemi Owode Local Council of Ogun State have protested the alleged allocation of their ancestral land to Chinese investors, appealing to Governor Dapo Abiodun to intervene and prevent the displacement of hundreds of people.

The residents, who staged a peaceful protest, expressed concern over the alleged deployment of security personnel and bulldozers to clear portions of the disputed land, including areas where houses had already been built.

They questioned why village heads and traditional rulers were not consulted before the exercise began.

The Baale of Fere, Chief Okesola Alani, said the communities were not opposed to industrial development but insisted that it should not come at the expense of residents’ homes and properties.

He lamented that some residents had invested their life savings in acquiring land and building houses, while others had contributed resources to provide basic amenities, including electricity.

“We are not fighting the government over development. We want the community to develop, and we want industries. But the industries should not come at the expense of the community. We have nowhere else to go,” Alani said.

He alleged that the traditional rulers were not consulted before the land-clearing exercise began.

“Before the government allocates land, it should contact the village leader, the Baale. None of us was contacted. They just came with the police, bulldozers and other equipment and started clearing our land,” he said.

Alani appealed to Abiodun to intervene, adding that the communities were willing to coexist with investors if the government could provide alternative land for industrial development without displacing existing residents.

He also said the community had been engaging the government since 2017 over the need to extend the village, but alleged that the matter remained unresolved.

“We are begging Governor Dapo Abiodun. I know he is an achiever and is making progress, but please, Governor, remember us. We are human beings,” he added.

The Baale urged the state government to convene a meeting involving traditional rulers, landlords, the Community Development Association (CDA) and other relevant stakeholders to resolve the dispute amicably.

He maintained that industrialisation was desirable but should be pursued in a manner that protected the homes, properties and livelihoods of existing residents.

Similarly, the Acting Chairman of the Community Development Association of Oniporogun and Fere communities, Salau Hamid, said residents were distressed by the alleged allocation, particularly because many had spent years saving to build their homes.

“It is saddening that, despite the difficult economy, we are struggling to build our houses, only to discover that the Chinese are taking over. We do not know how it happened,” Hamid said.

He claimed that more than 300 residents had completed their houses or were still building on the disputed land, urging the government to consider their plight before taking further action.

“We want development, yes, but this is not the kind of development we are looking for. We want to exist and coexist with the Chinese, but they can always acquire properties elsewhere,” he said.