The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Ikorodu community

  • Kidnappers lay siege to Ikorodu community

    Kidnappers lay siege to Ikorodu community

    For some time now, residents of Oshin-Tek Estate, Ajaguro Ojuoro Phase II, a small island in Owutu, Agric, Ikorodu, Lagos have been living in fear – no thanks to kidnappers who raid the area continually to snacth away residents. ADEBISI ONANUGA reports that the residents are pleading with the Lagos State Government to come to their rescue.

    Residents of Oshin-Tek Estate, Ajaguro Ojuoro Phase II, a small island in Owutu area of Agric, Ikorodu, now live in constant fear of kidnappers who have turned their community, once peaceful, to prey land.

    Members of the community are, therefore, calling on Governor Akinwunmi Ambode to come to their assistance and save them from the kidnappers.

    No fewer than eight people have reportedly been kidnapped from their homes within the last few months and huge sums of money paid as ransom before the victims were released by their abductors.

    Mrs Ronke Solaja, a mother of two, who was abducted 11 days ago, said she was released penultimate Sunday after an undisclosed amount was paid as ransom.

    Narrating her experience, Mrs Solaja said on that day, she was watching television in the sitting room when, at 8:00 p.m. two armed men forcibly entered her apartment; having broken down the door with a sledge hammer.

    She said the men dragged her out and then carried her over the fence where their colleagues were waiting.

    She said about eight of them dragged her through a swamp, Wood Island, into a canoe which was paddled away from the community to an unknown location after being blind-folded.

    The mother of two recalled being led out of the canoe and that she stepped on a dry land before her abductors led her into a hut built on a small dry land in the middle of the water.

    She said all communications the kidnappers did with her family were done through her husband’s phone to hers which they deliberately left behind when she was abducted.

    The victim, who said she is asthmatic, revealed that the kidnappers treated her well by providing medication and forced her to eat against her resolve.

    On the night she was released, she said the kidnappers called her husband and told him to meet them at Àgric bus stop with the ransom, 10 litres of fuel and torchlight.

    She said her husband was called again and told to go to Ajegunle, along Ikorodu Road to receive her.

    She said the journey from the kidnappers’ hideout to Ajegunle where her husband was waiting took about one hour and that she was blindfolded throughout the duration of the journey.

    She added that her abductors dropped her somewhere in the swamp behind Oluwanisola Petrol Station and gave her direction to a location where she met her husband seated on the ground.

    Another victim, Mrs Alabi, said her abductors came in at 1:30 a.m. through a shop in their house, adding that the shop was given to a neighbour who had some challenges.

    According to her, the kidnappers dragged her to their door and

  • Family urges police to wade into Ikorodu community crisis

    Family urges police to wade into Ikorodu community crisis

    Members of the Loti Mogun-Oja family of Ijomu in Ikorodu, Lagos State have appealed to the Lagos and Ogun state governments and the police to intervene in their land tussle.
    The fight over the large expanse of land located at Igode, a developing community in Sagamu Local Government Area of Ogun State, The Nation gathered, has already claimed two lives.
    Speaking with The Nation, the head of the Loti Mogun- Oja family, Alhaji Jimoh Lawal, said they decided to invite the governments and the police to the lingering problem because of its threat to security.
    ‘’The row over the disputed 34 hectares of land, began in May 2015, but got to a head in October of the same year, when a member of our family, Rasak Ademoye, with a few others, said they would be collecting land fees from any one who buys plots of land from the family, as well as other residents of the community. They said they had engaged an agent to take charge of the site.
    “But because our family is peace-loving, the elders came together and said such a thing should not happen. They claimed that they had also paid N300,000 to the agent. In order to avert the kind of problem which we believed such arrangement would bring, we decided to pay them the money so that peace will reign in the community.
    “The family later appointed three representatives each from the three branches that make up the Mogun-Oja Descendants family. Members were drawn from Igu Asemuti, Odunume and Mebude branches to monitor activities at the site.”
    But rather than bring about peace to the community, matters deteriorated as some people invaded the area, destroying buildings and injuring residents. The invaders also asked all old residents of the community to repurchase their plots of land.
    A resident, who declined to be mentioned, said the residents had not known peace since then. He added that many people had fled for safety.
    “Since the problem started, two people have been killed. The first person died in a shootout between the two rival groups. They came and demolished houses and threatened to kill whoever dares them. They said all of us should repurchase the land despite that we have been living there for years.
    ‘’Many of the residents have already vacated the community because they were chased away by thugs armed with dangerous weapons.”
    Lawal, who expressed sadness over the incident, said the family had lived in unity for years until recently.
    However, in their search for peace, the family has headed to court. Still, it urged the police to intervene.
    ‘’After several attempts to settle the issue amicably failed, we have to follow the path of peace. We have served them a court order. We have taken the step in the interest of peace, but are also urging the police to intervene now because we have observed that they are causing crisis in the community, and there is urgent need to curb their illegal actions before it degenerates into loss of lives,” a member of the family who pleaded anonymity said.
    However, in a telephone chat with The Nation, Rasak Ademoye, who is the allegedly masterminded the tussle, denied the allegations.
    Ademoye said the community is peaceful and that the crisis was in Maya in Ikorodu North Local Council Development Area, and not in Igode.

  • Church lifts Ikorodu community

    No fewer than 1,000 residents of Isawo community in Ikorodu Lagos last week received free food stuff, clothing, shoes and medical check-up courtesy of Grace to Grace International Church.

    The weeklong empowerment programme tagged Grace and Mercy Project (GAMP) also witnessed the donation of four sewing machines to graduates of the church’s Grace Fashion Institute.

    They were also given N30, 000 each to kick-start their fashion businesses within the community.

    Initiator of the project, Pastor (Mrs.) Atinuke Adesanya, who is also the senior pastor of the church, said GAMP was essentially about giving back to the society and lifting the masses.

    “There is no other motive or motivation than lifting the people and giving them succour. We don’t want anyone to be useless, stranded or helpless.

    “So, what we are doing is to help them with their immediate and short-term needs for a better future,” she stressed.

    The United Kingdom-based preacher said the items were donated by members of the church in the UK for the suffering masses in Nigeria.

    She stated that plans were on to construct a purpose-built walk-in health centre in the next one year where residents can access free medical attention and drugs.

    The centre, she assured, was at a special request of the community, adding that at least a paid doctor and nurses will be hired to offer healthcare to the residents at no cost.

    “We believe health is vital because money cannot buy happiness. So, we are ready to put the health centre in place in another one year so that we can tackle diseases and save more lives.”

    Speaking at the graduation ceremony, the general overseer of Dominion Chapel International Abuja, Archbishop John Praise, urged Nigerians to cultivate the habit of helping others.

    Praise said kindness is a seed that will never go unrewarded by God.

    “Whatever you make happen for others, God will make happen for you. Everything is a seed and if you are helpful to someone today, you will obtain mercies with your seed in multiple folds,” he added.

    One of the fashion graduates, Mercy Okon, praised the initiative and vowed to make good use of the investment on her.

    “I am so overwhelmed by what I have been given. I am determined to make things work and become self-sufficient so that I can be in a position to help others within the shortest time possible,” Okon stated.

    One of the residents, Gbenga Ajisafe, expressed the community’s gratitude to the church.

    “What they have done for us in such a little time here is incredible. We have received all manners of gifts and we have nothing to give back in return than to say that God will bless them for us,” he said.

  • Ikorodu community gets free medical check-up, glasses

    Ikorodu community gets free medical check-up, glasses

    Residents of Adamo Igbaga village,  a remote community in the outskirt of Ikorodu Local Government Area of Lagos State, received a fresh breath of life recently.

    They burst into jubilant songs and took to unusual dance steps when Charity Mission Empowerment Foundation (CMEF), a Non-Governmental Organization, (NGO) based in Ojodu, Lagos State visited the community to conduct free medical check on the people. They were given free drugs and eye glasses to improve their health conditions.

    •Ngozi
    •Ngozi

    Long before the arrival of the CMEF crew led by  the founder and coordinator, Princess Ngozi Oluwagbemiga, the villagers – men and women, children and adults alike, among them, a 106- year- old, Madam Comfort Peter, already gathered under canopies waiting patiently for the team. At the end of the day, their patience was worth the while as they went home fulfilled.

    In a chat with The Nation, Madam Peter,expressed gratitude to CMEF for the gesture, describing it as uncommon in the history of the village. She noted that she had, had a running battle with her sight and thought that her plight was beyond redemption. “I never thought that I could see with my eyes again because my sight was as good gone. Fortunately, for me, they came and allayed the fears that crippled me all along. They gave me a pair of glasses and some medication to help my health condition. I am very grateful.”

    Following in her footsteps, the traditional ruler of the community, Chief Jimoh Odofin, 60, expressed happiness over the exercise. Odofin, a building contractor, who benefitted from a free medical treatment and eye glass given after an eye test by the medical team, said, signs that he needed an eye glass appeared when suddenly,it became difficult for him to read. “We do not have a health centre in Igbaga. Most villagers travel several kilometers to the city to seek medical assistance and it is always difficult when we have emergencies.

    “This is why we are grateful to the organizers of this medical intervention for their assistance. They have met us at the point of our needs,” he stated.

    “We attended to a total of 215 people; 115 in the morning session and 100 in the evening,” said Mrs. Helen Adamu, a matron and  member of the medical team.

    Speaking,  Princess Oluwagbemiga revealed that, beyond free medical services, CMEF has also trained auxiliary nurses, members of the police, bankrolled several surgeries for the needy, and also gave out mobility aids for the physically challenged in the society.

    “It is what I love doing. We have plans to run a mobile clinic in order to avail everyone of our services,” she said.

    •Otufodunrin delivering his lecture at the CMEF event
    •Otufodunrin delivering his lecture at the CMEF event

    The Adamo event climaxed on Sunday March 15, 2015, with a thanksgiving/lecture at Famous Gospel Proclaimers’ Church, (FGPC) Ojodu, Lagos. In his lecture entitled: The Impact of Empowerment Strategies for greater economic development, Mr. Lekan Otufodunrin, Online Editor,  of this newspaper, said there was need for wealthy men in the society and government to factor-in the poor in their plans and policy thrust, as according to him, true development begins with a happy people. “It is high time the wealthy and by extension, government understood that the happy life does not consist of how much an individual or government has, but how well the people live.

    That is the totality of well-doing,” he said, stressing that it is only when the people are happy that the government and the wealthy will truly enjoy their privileged positions. “Therefore,” he continued, “the people should be first in all things. This is why groups that aim at making life better for people like CMEF should be encouraged.”

    Also speaking, Rev. Dr Bukola Oluwagbemiga, the General Overseer of FGPC and husband to Princess, described CMEF as God’s own project. “CMEF has been a road map to liberating the poor and less-privileged in Nigeria and Africa from the shackles of poverty through skills acquisition, counseling and general empowerment,” he said. He noted that with the increasing number of the poor and less-privileged in the world following incidences of war and famine, duty calls on everyone to stand up and be counted for good works. “CMEF is a product of passion and love for humanity and I urge everyone to play a part, even as I commend those already running with the dream,” Bukola stated.

    Mrs. Helen Oghuma, a board member and partner of CMEF, said she identified with the group after she was convinced that the group sincerely wanted to positively touch people’s lives. “I could not but share in the vision after I saw that those behind it had genuine feelings for the needy.”