The Lagos State government has said investment in the Lekki Free Trade Zone has hit about N4.55 trillion.
Commissioner for Commerce, Industry and Cooperatives, Rotimi Ogunleye told journalists yesterday in Alausa that the investment includes N3.35 trillion ($11 billion) from Dangote Group and N1.2 trillion ($4billion) from other investors.
Ogunleye said about 116 investors had so far registered with the Lekki Free Trade Zone. Only 16 have commenced operations.
According to him, while some factories are currently under construction, 100 investors have signified their intention to register and situate their business within the zone.
“The Lekki Free Zone remains a landmark industrial project for the Lagos State government. The strategic partnership between the Lagos State government and the China-Africa Lekki Investment Limited (CALIL) in the Lekki Free Zone Development Company (LFZDC) is a testament to the undying resolve of the state government to ensure sustainable industrialisation of the state that would translate to improved job and wealth creation as well as economic growth through the attraction of local and foreign direct investments.
“I am very happy to inform you that 116 investors have so far registered with LFZ out of which 16 have commenced full operations. “While some factories are currently under construction, 100 investors have also signified their intention to register and situate their business within the zone,” he said.
The commissioner explained that during the period under review, the Lagos State government further released a sum of N698,478,850 to the joint ventures as part of the state’ equity contribution.
“This is part of the effort to ensure the speedy development of the free zone and honour the state’s obligation to counterpart funding of the project,” he added.
Ogunleye also said the government has disbursed N740, 461,432.00 as compensation to the host communities of parcel B comprising Yegunda and Abomiti as well as Lekki-Epe International Airport zone.
“The payment received tremendous applause from members of the communities and rekindled their hope and confidence in the state government to fulfil its part of the bargain enshrined in the memorandum of understanding signed with the host communities,” he said.
He listed other efforts by his ministry to ensure that commerce and economic activities in the state are vibrant. He talked about implementation of the harmonized inspection of industries and support for entrepreneurs.
The commissioner listed other efforts by his ministry to ensure that commerce and economic activities in the state are vibrant, saying implementation of the harmonised inspection of industries and support for entrepreneurs is in the offing.
“I am happy to inform you that the State Executive Council last month formally approved the establishment of an integrated Light Industrial Park in Imota with full complements of warehouses, factory units, water and electricity facilities and adequate parking spaces. In the first phase of the project, we will build 80 factory units with the target to hit the peak point of 120 units upon completion,” he said.
Lagos State Government Akinwunmi Ambode Thursday said more public private partnership (PPP) in infrastructure funding, including the proposed Fourth Mainland Bridge, was needed to make the state a preferred destination for investment.
He said the state was determined to explore the PPP model in areas such as road network expansion, transportation, housing and environment.
“Some critical projects we have identified to be implemented through collaboration with the private sector include the Fourth Mainland Bridge, the Okokomaiko road expansion project, Oko-Oso-Itoikin road dualisation and the Ikorodu-Agbowa-Itoikin-Ijebu-Ode road project,” he said.
The governor, represented by the Deputy Governor Dr Idiat Adebule, spoke at the 2017 annual lecture of the law firm of Punuka Attorneys and Solicitors in Lagos.
The theme was: The role of public private partnership in infrastructural development.
The governor said the government was not abdicating its responsibilities but essentially releasing scarce resources for other important projects.
He said an advantage of bringing the private section into governance was the efficiency it brings to project management and the issues of waste, delayed delivery and abandonment associated with public projects.
Ambode the said government revenue cannot be relied upon as the only source of funding for developmental projects.
“The reality of this fact is becoming clearer as a result of reduction in government revenue occasioned by dwindling oil prices and increasing need of the people,” he said.
The governor said the state has already effectively used the PPP model in the delivery of critical infrastructure, such as the Bus Rapid Transit system, the ongoing Eko Atlantic Project, the Lekki Free Trade Zone, among others.
Senior Partner, Punuka Attorneys and Solicitors, Chief Anthony Idigbe (SAN), said government alone cannot be saddled with investing tax payers’ money in otherwise commercially viable infrastructure projects in the face of other social needs.
“Consequently, private participation is needed for the enhancement of infrastructural development and indeed is required as, perhaps, a matter of social commitment, to step up their game to fill the infrastructural funding gap.
“In addition, they can bring private sector experience to conceptualisation, design, execution, operation and maintenance of infrastructure,” Idigbe said.
Among speakers at the event were Chief Executive Officer of Chapel Hill Denham, Mr Bolaji Balogun, Founder, E. Anthony Professional Corporation, Canada, Anthony Ross (QC) and Partner, WeirFoulds LLP, a Canandian based law firm, Frank Walwyn, among others.
The Lagos State Government at the weekend charged investors in the Lekki Free Trade Zone, LFTZ, corridor to step up their Corporate Social Responsibilities (CSR), to the host communities as that is one of the ways to secure the multi-billion dollars investment in the corridor.
The Government said the administration of Governor Akinwunmi Ambode was passionate about the investment in the corridor as it is the future hub of commerce and industry in Africa.
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Executive Director, Finance and Administration, Lekki Worldwide Investments Limited, Popson Jaiyesimi who spoke at a 3-day workshop on “Communication and Team Skills in Effective Interfacing on Community Service and Relations” for Stakeholders in the LFZ communities at the La Campagne Beach Resort, Lekki, Lagos, said CSR had become so critical that it could not be neglected by investors willing to secure their investments.
“We have a strategic plan to move Lekki Worldwide Investments limited forward and one of the things we identified is how to get the investors and the communities talking and we decided that there should be a workshop of information sharing between the investors and the communities. We are just the moderators.
“The governor is quite keen on this project because Lekki Free Trade Zone is the future of Nigeria businesses and it is a product of research. The fundamental thing is to make sure that there is security and it comes when the communities are walking in tandem with the investors.
“This is to keep them talking because when you keep the people around the table, they share their fears and sometimes, you find out that it is just miscommunication as there is no issue at all,” he said.
Jaiyesimi added that the state government had understudied the Niger Delta crisis and what led to the agitation, saying that government would find a way out to address the needs of the people in Lekki in order to ensure the projects in the area were not truncated.
“We have found out that we need to get it right, because we have multi-billion dollars investments in that corridor and government has spent so much money in compensation and investment in the corridor. We are interested in knowing what the investors are putting down as Corporate Social Responsibilities to the communities,” he said.
Jaiyesimi stressed that coordinated effort of all stakeholders in matters of CSR was required to ensure that the goal of the Lagos megacity was achieved, thereby guaranteeing prosperity for investors and communities.
“Numerous research findings have shown that CSR requires communication and teamwork for effective interfacing and relationship with host communities; guaranteeing safety and security for business,” he said.
He added that community development projects through CSR must meet people’s hierarchy of needs for lasting appreciation and goodwill, saying that impact assessment was a requirement for sustainability of any community project.
Jaiyesimi stated that government had done a need assessment of the communities and found out that what was paramount among their needs was employment for their children by the investors, but lamented that in some cases their children were not qualified for the jobs.
According to him, conscious efforts should be made by the investors to educate and train children from the host communities on the skills and competency they needed to be gainfully employed in their establishments.
Also speaking, Gokil Rajan, Operational Head, Lekki Free Trade Zone said that part of its CSR to the communities was in the area of ensuring health, hygiene and sanitation, saying that the organisation had reduced open defecation in schools through construction of toilets.
He stated that the lives of about 10,000 students had been touched while 36 schools in the Lekki corridor had been provided with toilets which had helped in curbing open defecation.
Group General Manager, Corporate Relations, Dangote Oil Refining Company Limited, Yinka Akande, said the importance of community keying into investors’ projects in Lekki could not be over-emphasized as any investor willing to make impact must relate with the host communities in order to secure the project.
He said failure to cooperate with the host communities could impede the project, with the investors losing large chunks of their investments.
A community leader in the area, Ayodele Olayinka said the over 200 communities in the Lekki corridor fully supported government’s effort to develop the LFTZ as it would impact positively on the lives of people in the area.
Olayinka, who is the Chairman, Abomiti Zone in Parcel ‘B’ however, appealed to the state government to give them the land which had been earmarked for them after they were made to relinquish their original land, while describing the LFTZ development as a laudable project.
TEN years after they relinquished their ownership of 7,500 hectares of land for the development of Lekki Free Trade Zone (LFTZ) on the Lekki Peninsula axis, members of the community yesterday urged the Lagos State government to adhere to the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) it signed with them.
At a news conference in Ikeja, the communities, under the auspices of Lekki Coastal Area Development Association (Resettlement Committee), protested what they called “incomplete concession” of the 750 hectares of land granted as compensation in exchange for the 7,500 hectares acquired by the state for the LFTZ.
The MoU was signed in 2007 by the Lagos State Government, the Ibeju/Lekki Local Government Area, Lekki Worldwide Investment Limited (LIWL) and Accredited Representatives of villages and communities.
The communities are: Idasho, Idotun, Ilege, Imodibo, Itoke, Okunraiye, Ilekuru, Tiye and Imagbon-Segun, all riverine communities in Ibeju/Lekki council area.
They lamented that two years after the formal concession and the issuance of the Certificate of Occupancy (CofO) to the 750 hectares, the beneficiaries cannot take physical possession of the property.
Their counsel, Messrs Social and Economic Rights Action Center (SERAC), said the CofO was of no consequence since the original owners of the 750-hectare compensation, have not been settled by the government.
SERAC’s Executive Director, Felix Morka, said: “It is double jeopardy for the villagers. The government took their lands and the one they were given in exchange for it has not been freed up. So, the titled document is of no effect.”
The government had in June 2014 presented the CofO for 750 hectares of land to the communities affected by the LFTZ recognised as stated in the MoU.
In a statement presented at the news briefing by Morka on behalf of the communities, the association alleged that the government has breached the MoU terms by its failure to fulfil its obligation to the host communities after dislodging them from their ancestral homes.
According to him, the government has consistently reneged on its pledged to compensate the communities for all economic loss, provide resettlement land of 750 hectares, grant 2.5 per cent equity share capital in LWIL, provide jobS and livelihood opportunities for members among others
HIS words: “An approximately 7500 hectares was taken in exchange for 750 hectares and the government continues to renege on that commitment for ten years. It is simply asking for trouble and this is the same Free Trade Zone presented to international investors and donors to finance.
“The government wants to build an industrial complex of the 21st century but it is applying the rules of 14th century because those who are investing in the land will not find it amusing that the people on whose land into which they are sinking millions and billions of dollars are completely marginalised for ten years.
“That the original owners of the land can no longer feed their families as a result of the failure of the government to meet its obligations. The people have done their part to surrender the land, yet, they have been deprived of the very little benefits promised.
“The communities have not been able to approach, let alone step foot on the land comprised in the CofO because the villages that the government is seeking to acquire the land from have yet to be compensated. So as a matter of fact, the acquisition upon which this CofO is based is incomplete and imperfect because the requirement means the original owners must be compensated. Without that, the trustees cannot trespass.”
The SERAC director described as unfair that members of the communities got N10, 000 each as compensations for their crops as against what should be due for the landed property they relinquished.
Morka said it was unfair for a government that was raking in millions of dollars from investors who are buying lands in the LFTZ to set up businesses to so treat the original owners of the land.
“The only one that was performed haphazardly from the memorandum was the payment of compensation. A renumeration was done and rather than paying for the land, the government decided simply to pay for the crops which amounted to nothing. Some got barely N10, 000 for the huge farm lands”, he claimed.
Charging the government to seek means of alleviating the people’s suffering, Morka condemned the role of some government officials and politicians in fueling crisis in the area. He said: “This is not the time for any individual, no matter how highly placed to take advantage and abuse their privilege to oppress people.
“A member of the National Assembly is playing a role in the current crisis is unbecoming of anyone who occupies such a high office. He should use his office to advance the best interest of his community and save it from any kind of tension that may result in social strive.”
Also speaking, the chairman of the LCADA, Alhaji Tajudeen Jegede, urged the government to dissolve a resettlement committee purportedly sponsored by a federal lawmaker in the area.
The Police in Lagos have denied reports attributed to the leaders of Okunraye Community in Ibeju-Lekki, alleging that the police killed the Lekki Free Trade Zone Managing Director, Alhaji Tajudeen Disu.
The Lagos State Police Command’s spokesman, DSP Joseph Offor, condemned the allegation, describing the report as cheap blackmail and diversionary.
The reports making the rounds has it that stray bullet from the police killed Disu on Oct. 12.
“They are not serious, who inflicted machete injury on retired Col. Usman, the Chief Security Officer of Dangote Refinery? Was it the police that inflicted the injury on him?
“Their allegation is diversionary, it’s a cheap blackmail.
“Is it the police that asked the villagers to gang up in their numbers to stage a violent protest? Is it the police that asked them to come from their homes with charms and ammunition?
“All those things they are trying to say is simply a cheap blackmail and diversionary.
“It is not true and investigation is still ongoing. When the autopsy is conducted, we will get to know how he died,’’ Offor told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on telephone.
The Lagos PPRO added; “They should own up because before they left their various homes that morning, all of them were armed to the teeth to do exactly what happened that day which is to kill and maim.
“The Police cannot join issues with them on that kind of cheap blackmail.’’
NAN reports that Disu died of gunshot wounds he sustained when gunmen attacked him during a peace mission to one of the communities in the Free Trade Zone Area in Ibeju-Lekki.
The death of the Managing Director, Lekki Free Trade Zone, Alhaji Tajudeen Disu was caused by police bullet, leaders of Okunraye community in Lagos have claimed.
This claim was contained in an affidavit in support of a Fundamental rights suit filed before a Lagos High Court against the Police, Directorate of State Security (DSS) and Dangote group.
The leaders who condemned the detention of members of their community, alleged that contrary to reports on the incident that occurred on October 12, it was stray bullet from the mobile policemen that hit Disu from behind and killed him instantly.
In the suit filed before Justice Raliatu Adebiyi, brought under Chapter 4 of the 1999 Constitution and Articles 23(1)(4)(5)(6) (7), 12 (1) and 14 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Right (Ratification and Enforcement) Act, 2004, one Alhaji Surajudeen Salami, who deposed to the affidavit recalled that the Lagos State Government, sometimes in 2007, forcefully acquired their land from them.
Joined as plaintiffs in the suit with Salami are Jubrila Balogun, Akibu Razak, Baale Yesiru Amusa (suing for themselves and on behalf of the people of Okunraye Town).
The community also sued the Inspector General of Police, Lagos Police Commissioner, Special Anti-robbery Squad (SARS), the Nigerian Army and Ibeju Lekki Local Government.
Salami said the people of Okunraye had their homes and native buildings on the land, which was also their source of livelihood.
According to him, Disu was killed on a day the community leaders were to meet with Dangote Group, to discuss job-related issues for eligible community youths in the massive project the company was erecting on their land.
Salami said they had made several attempts to discuss with Dangote management but to no avail, adding that the development forced the youths to barricade the entrance into the project site of Dangote in an attempt to compel the company to discuss with the community.
At about 9am, Salami said he was informed that a large group of mobile policemen had surrounded the entrance to the project and were burning down the barricade as well as other obstruction.
He recalled that the policemen stormed the community on the fateful day and started releasing tear-gas and shooting in the air, adding that at the time the shooting was on-going, the Divisional Police Office in charge of the area was at the palace of the Baale of Okunraye to discuss on how the issue could be resolved.
At that point, Salami said: “Some members then rushed to the Baale’s house to inform him of a mayhem on-going outside and how the policemen had burnt down the barricade. The DPO left Baale’s house to go and confirm the report.
“When I got there, I met the Managing Director of Lekki Free Trade Zone (LFTZ) Limited, Mr Tajudeen Disu; Alhaji Jegede, Chairman of Resettlement Committee, and the Baale of Igiye Community.
“When we were imploring Disu, Alhaji Jegede and the Baale of Igiye Community to stop policemen from shooting because the members of Okunraye community did not want to fight and wanted to discuss with management of Dangote, the police refused to stop shooting and then a stray bullet hit Mr Disu from behind and he died instantly.”
He said the bullet also hit a young woman from the community and she sustained injury on the arm.
Salami, who said he saw the policeman that pulled the trigger that killed Disu, alleged that the policemen stop shooting when they realised that a stray bullet had killed Disu.
He added that himself and others left the scene immediately to take the injured woman to the hospital, and that by the time they came back, the remains of Disu had been removed from the scene.
In the suit, the plaintiffs want an order directing the respondents to release them unconditionally from custody; an order declaring their arrest and continuous detention as wrongful and a sharp contravention of their fundamental human rights, as well as a declaration that the invasion of their community on October 12, 2015 and their subsequent arrests constituted a threat to life, freedom, private and family life.
They also want a perpetual injunction restraining the defendants from arresting, detaining, harassing, invading Okunraye community or otherwise violating their fundamental human rights.
When the matter came up before Justice Adebiyi yesterday, the applicants’ lawyer, Akinlabi Apara informed the court of an ex-parte application and other processes filed in the suit, but the judge said she would not take any hasty decision in the matter without studying the file.
She said the matter was just brought to her knowledge and that she needed time to understand the issues involved and adjourned till today.
Lagos State Governor, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode on Monday expressed shock and sadness over the murder of the Managing Director of Lekki Worldwide Investment Company, Mr Tajudeen Disu, urging the police to go all out and ensure that perpetrators behind the act are brought to book.
The Governor who broke the news when he addressed Government House Correspondents, at the Lagos House, Alausa Ikeja said, the late Disu was shot by assailants during an official visit to one of the villages within the zone in the early hours of Monday.
“We are deeply touched with the loss of our dedicated officers at the Lekki Free Trade Zone, Alhaji Tajudeen Disu, who was until his death the arrowhead of the Free Trade Zone Initiative. He was killed within the Lekki Free Trade Zone this morning. It really saddens my heart and the heart of all of us because this was somebody that has been dedicated to his duty in the past ten years.”
The Governor described the late Disu as a man who was committed to promoting the inflow of investment to Lagos State expressed concern over the motives of those behind the killing.
He directed the State Commissioner of Police, Mr Fatai Owoseni to ensure that no stone is left unturned in order to determine the events that led to the attack on late Mr Tajudeen Disu.
“This is a great concern and I have directed the Lagos State Commissioner of Police to investigate the cause of the death. The Commissioner of Police must do a thorough investigation to unravel the root cause of what has just happened because he was on a peaceful mission to that place,” the Governor said.
He however urged residents of the area to remain calm as his administration will continue to ensure that the security of lives and properties is accorded necessary priority in the State and that the zone is safe for investors
“I want to appeal to all our people in Ibeju Lekki axis that they should give peace a chance it is in the interest of all Lagosians that we attract as many investors to the state. That is what we have been doing and improve upon in the last four months. I implore everybody to be calm. We would get to the root of this unfortunate incident,” he said.
Ambode also reiterated government’s determination to create more jobs by bringing more investors to the Zone saying that this can only be achieved if the residents allow peace to reign in the zone.
“I will like everybody to also know that we are trying our best but we can only appeal to our people to allow peace to reign in the Free Trade Zone. That is the only way we can allow more people to be involved in this trade zone. Let me tell our people that we are on the right cause for the kind of job creation we want to bring to Lagos State.”
The Commissioner of Police, Mr. Fatai Owoseni on his part, assured the people of the state that the Police have swung into action to ensure that the culprits were brought to book saying that some suspects have been apprehended and investigation is on-going to determine if there are major sponsors behind the killing.
“We have so far arrested 10 suspects and the arrests we have made are those that are directly responsible. We are still in the centre of the operation to be made.
“We would do a diligent investigation. We will ensure that those people that are behind it are arrested, not just the people we see on the road are perpetrators, and there may be sponsors. We go after these sponsors and I can assure you we ensure the investigation is carried out as speedily as possible as we make sure they are diligently prosecuted,” the Police boss assured.
It was former Lagos State Governor Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu who saw the vision. His successor, Babatunde Fashola, bought into it. Now, Governor Akinwunmi Ambode seems set to be the one that will open the doors of the Lekki Free Trade Zone, thus fast-tracking the state’s economic development, writes OLUKOREDE YISHAU.
In the beginning was the land. But the land was without form until Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu breathed life into it and so began the mammoth project called the Lekki Free Trade Zone. The enormity of the work meant Tinubu could not go far. He laid a solid foundation, which was taken to a notch higher by his successor, Babatunde Fashola.
When Akinwunmi Ambode took over the mantle of leadership slightly over 100 days ago, he fell in love with the project. He seems to be giving all his attention to it. And the way things appear, he is set to hasten things up and open the door to more prosperity for Lagos.
One needs to take into account the worth of the project before its potential can be truly appreciated. It will house an oil refinery, fertiliser plant, cement plant, a petro-chemical plant, sea port and international airport.
The Lekki FTZ will be like a new modern city with integration of industries, commerce, real estate development, warehousing and logistics, tourism and entertainment, among others.
•Some of the equipment on site
The massive project sits on about 60, 000 hectares of land, excluding the areas allocated for the Lekki Free Trade Zone, sea port and international airport.
For Ambode, the enormous task that comes with governing a mega city like Lagos is not lost.
His inaugural speech gave an inkling of his vast knowledge of the workings of the state, having garnered 27 years experience in various cadres of the state civil service.
He had, in that speech, pledged to continue the State Development Plan, 2012-2025, structured under four pillars, including Social Development and Security, Infrastructural Development, Economic Development and Sustainable Environment.
Since May 29, each pillar of the Lekki Free Trade Zone has gotten a feel of what Ambode has up his sleeves in line with his vision to build on the strides of the previous administrations.
His quest to ensure economic development came to fore last week when he took a whole day to visit and inspect the Lekki Free Trade Zone (LFTZ), an emerging investors’ hub, which is fast attracting local and foreign investors.
For some five hours, Ambode, with his team, including Permanent Secretaries and Directors in the ministries involved in the multi-billion dollar project, went round to see things first-hand.
Their first port of call was the administrative office of the zone. There, the team had a session with a consortium of Chinese investors, executives of the Lekki Free Zone Development Company and the Lekki Worldwide Investment Corporation, managing partners of the Zone.
The team was briefed on what has been done and what needs to be done if the project must see the light of the day.
The Chairman, LFZDC, Otunba Olusegun Jawando outlined some of the benefits of the Zone, which sits on over 16,500 hectares of land. He said he was optimistic that, in a couple of years, the Zone would become a one-stop destination for investors from across the world, which would, in turn, engender economic growth in Lagos and Nigeria.
The Managing Director, Lekki Free Zone Development Company, Mr. Ding Yonghua, listed their challenges to include road network, provision of a sea port, as well as paucity of funds.
He further explained that, of the four quadrants of road network within the zone, only two had been opened up for access where development is already ongoing by some investors.
Yonghua told the delegation that he was optimistic that construction on the other two quadrants would open up the Zone for more willing investors.
He intimated the delegation of the need for the sea port to be up and running, adding that the port would ease the mode of moving heavy duty containers and materials into the zone.
Yonghua further said despite the counterpart funding provided by the state government and the principal investors, a lot more was required to speed up work on the Zone.
Ambode promised that his administration would do all within its powers to fast- track work on the Zone, adding that in a matter of months, work would commence on the sea port.
According to him, his administration would provide the necessary incentives required to hasten the development of the Zone.
Ambode said: “I came to see the level of development that is going on here. The Free Trade Zone is a major catalyst for the development of Lagos State. It was started during the administration of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and was continued by my predecessor, Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola.
“Whatever it is that we need to do together with the community that has expressed its commitment to the success of the project, we would join hands together to move this project forward.”
The governor said his administration would start work on the seaport, which has been idle for about nine years.
“There is no way we would have this Free Trade Zoneý if the port is not activated. It needs to be reviewed. My administration will look at it and make sure the port is activated and construction starts immediately,” Ambode said.
He urged the management to scale up the marketing strategy of the zone so as to get more investors to buy into the project.
After the meeting with those working on the project, it was time to meet the people who gave up their lands for the project. Ambode was greeted by cheers from residents of the area. He gave them the opportunity to air their views about the project in line with his promise to run an all-inclusive and compassionate government.
Chief Kamilu Ahmed spoke on behalf of the residents. He listed some of the challenges facing the residents to include lack of electricity, good roads and jobs for unemployed graduate youths living within the community.
He said most of the residents gave up their lands for the LFTZ to come alive, saying the decision to back the project was based on the belief that it would be beneficial to them all. Ahmed said for over five years, the communities within the area had been without electricity, calling on the governor to intervene on their behalf.
He also appealed to the governor to use his good offices to ensure that graduate youths were given consideration for jobs in the course of the development of the zone.
After listening to the residents, Ambode said: “I am happy for the peaceful way the residents conducted themselves, especially with the release of their lands. I assure you all that all of us will benefit greatly when the project is completed.”
Some of the storage facilities
On the electricity problem, he said: “I also want to assure the people here that the issue of electricity will be looked at. It is surprising that some communities here do not have electricity in the last five years. In the next four weeks something must happen. It is totally unacceptable and we would make sure that we bring succour to our people.
“That is why we are in government and that is what they have told us that we should do and that is what we will do every day in this administration.”
The governor praised the community and the consortium of Chinese companies for supporting the state on the project.
He also praised the residents of Ibeju-Lekki for accommodating the project, appealing for more perseverance for the completion of the project as it would be a long-lasting investment for the state and the country. He also assured the residents that qualified youths would be considered for employment into agencies of the government.
It was after hearing the investors and the residents out that the team inspected the project.
The delegation made brief stops at various points where serious work has already begun. He took particular interest in the oil refinery, fertiliser plant, cement plant, and petrochemical plant being undertaken by African richest man, Alhaji Aliko Dangote.
Appreciable work has already been done at the site. The Dangote Refinery alone is estimated at $11 billion and has the capacity to produce what all the country’s four refineries can produce at full capacity. There are other multi-billion dollars investments driven by consortium of Chinese companies.
China and Chinese companies are major stakeholders in the Lekki Fre
•One of the buildings at the project site
e Trade (LFTZ), Lagos. The project is expected to churn out 300, 000 direct and 600, 000 indirect jobs over the next few years. This was why the former Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Olusegun Aganga described the LFTZ as one of the biggest Chinese projects in Nigeria.
The LFTZ is facing the Atlantic Ocean in the south and the Lekki Lagoon in the north, and the entire Zone is featured with flat topography and a beautiful scenery.
It has easy access to the existing international airport and sea port of Lagos, which are respectively about 70 km and 50 km in distance. Moreover, the new Lagos international airport is only about 10km from LFZ. In May 2006, the Chinese consortium, CCECC-Beyond International Investment & Development Co., Ltd (CCECC-Beyond), as the majority shareholder, entered into the Joint Venture with the Lagos State Government and the Nigerian partner “Lekki Worldwide Investment Ltd.” to establish the Lekki Free Zone Development Company (LFZDC) in Lagos, Nigeria, which is authorized by both the Nigeria Federal Government and the Lagos State Government as the solely and legally competent entity to develop, operate and manage the Lekki Free Trade Zone project.
In Oct 2006, Lekki Free Zone Development Company FZC (LFZDC) embarked on the Phase I Development of LFTZ, named as “China-Nigeria Economic& Trade Cooperation Zone” (CNETCZ) which covers approximately 1200 hectares.
The project is aimed at developing, operating and managing a modern Free Zone in accordance with international practice by making full use of the advantages of Lagos as being the important distribution hub in West Africa, thereby further enhancing the economic cooperation between Nigeria and China with their mutual complement and compatibility of resources, optimising the industrial structure and improving its national living standard.
The infrastructure being provided for investors include access roads, 12 megawatts Power Plants, water plants, sewage plants and telecommunications. Other supporting Facilities will include residential houses, hotels, shopping malls, hospitals, schools, office and recreational facilities.
Already, the Integrated Agrochemical Factory built by CANDEL FZE, a leading Nigerian Agrochemical Company, has been commissioned.
The Integrated Manufacturing Facility has the capacity to deliver 80 million litres of formulated products per annum. The facility has five processing plants for Soluble Liquids (SL), Emulsifiable Concentrates (EC) and Suspension Concentrates (SC) of products from diverse chemical families. It has sufficient capacity to supply CANDEL’s own distribution network in Nigeria and Ghana, with enough spare capacity for third parties in other parts of the African Continent.
Before an Ikeja High Court, Lagos State, is a litigation on a 26,486-hectare land involving a popular television evangelist and a military officer. The preacher is asking the court to decide the ownerhip of the land in dispute on the Lekki-Epe Expressway, Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos, in his favour; so is the officer. While the case is on, court orders are said to have been flouted, reports SEYI ODEWALE.
The sleepy, bushy and serene settlements of Ofiran and Aiyeteju villages in the neighbourhood of the Lekki Free Trade Zone (LFTZ) could have remained in oblivion, despite the rate of development in the Lekki/Ajah corridor of Lagos State, but for the litigation on a parcel of land. The suit involves a real estate firm, Meridian Properties Limited, linked to a popular television evangelist and Senior Pastor, Kings International Christian Centre (KICC), Pastor Matthew Ashimolowo who has been served an Order of Cmmittal to prison proceedings for allegedly disobeying the order of an Ikeja High Court, Lagos Judicial Division to maintain the status quo on the land pending the determination of the substantive suit on a disputed land in the villages. Ashimolowo, who is said to be a director on the board of the firm and the claimant in the suit, allegedly flouted the court order.
He was said to have been served forms 48 and 49 (notice of consequence of disobedience to court order and notice to show why order of committal) shoukl not be made against him, for not complying with the order of the court in the suit filed by his company.
The firm is said to have sought the leave of an Ikeja High Court in the Lagos Judicial Division presided over by Justice Atinuke Ipaye to stop an Army Captain, E. Ugoh, attached to the Army School of Logistics, Ikeja, Lagos State from trespassing on its 26,486 hectares of land in Ofiran Village, on the Lekki/Epe Expressway, Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos State.
The said land, the firm claimed, was acquired in stages from land owning families of the village and let into possession and “had since remained in effective possession from time of purchase from sometimes in 2003 till date.”
Meridian Properties Limited, through its counsel, Dapo Opakunle explained how the land was acquired. It said in its claim that 50 acres were bought from the Ilari Ogun family of Ofiran Village in Ibeju-Lekki Local Government Area of Lagos State at N30 million; eight acres were also said to have been bought from the Oduntan family of the same village at N12.6 million; six acres were equally bought at N15 million from the Kafaru family of the same village and three acres from Alimi family of Igando Onnudu Town, Ibeju-Lekki at N5.4 million.
Upon buying the land, according to the firm’s counsel, “the claimant was put into immediate possession and had since been exercising full rights of ownership of the subject matter of this suit till date.”
The land in question, according to the firm, was covered by Survey Plan No OJL/56a-c/89 dated 10th of September, 1989, signed by a licensed surveyor, O.A Ojo.
The firm averred in its 26-paragraph claim, among others, that in its bid to construct housing units to be called Baron Estate on the said land, it cleared the place and commenced work on the site. However, the firm said sometime in February this year construction workers on the land were accosted and chased away by Captain Ugoh’s men, who later erected a “Military Zone Keep Off” sign on the land.
But the sign was removed, according to the firm, and work continued on the land. “The claimant is not aware that the Military Barracks and formation close to the area have anything to do with the claimant’s land and so the claimant removed the sign post and continued its construction work.”
The firm said it was shocked on March 1, this year, to see the said land invaded by soldiers, caterpillars and bulldozers to demolish structures being built on the land.
With all these claims, the firm has sought the order of the court in a two-paragraph declaration that: “It is the bona fide owner of the land measuring 26,486 hectares situate at Ofiran Village, which is covered by various Deeds of Assignments and Memorandum of Sale and represented in Survey Plan no OJL/56a-c/89 dated the 10th day of September, 1989, signed by Surveyor O.A Ojo. It said the act of entering its land by the defendant without its consent or authority and subsequent demolition of its structures, properties and fence without a court order is unlawful and a trespass by the defendant.
It then asked for the “order of the court to award N50 million damages against the defendant for trespassing and demolition of its properties; award another N50 million against the defendant as specific damages for destroying its properties and a perpetual order of injunction to restrain the defendant, his privies, assigns, workmen or any person whosoever, from acting for him from further entering or trespassing the said land.”
The defendant in his statement of defence denied every claim by the claimant, from paragraph 1 to 26. He went further to correct the claim that the said land is located in Ofiran.
“The defendant states in further denial of paragraph 3 of the statement of claim that the land in dispute is located at Alfa Alamo in Aiyeteju Village, Lagos-Epe Express Road, Ibeju/Lekki Local Government, Lagos and not Ofiran.”
The Captain in his 17-paragraph defence said, among others, that “the land previously belonged to his late father, Mr. Nze Vitalis Ugoh; that his father bought the land from Oyafunke family in 1990 after he had relocated from Maroko and Oyafunke family of Aiyeteju Village issued him a receipt; that the land was surveyed by W.T Adeniji, a surveyor and boundary marks and pillars were erected on the land with Survey Plan no WAT/LA/1095/96 inscribed on them.”
He also said that “his late father relocated to his village in 1993 as a result of old age and handed over the land to him and the Power of Attorney in respect of the property.”
He said upon enquiry from the Oyafunke family from whom his father bought the land, he discovered that the Ofiran Village from whom the claimant alleged that it bought the land in dispute from, has no land on the Lagos-Epe Expressway.
“The defendant states that upon enquiry from Oyafunke family, he discovered that the Ofiran Village from whom the claimant alleged that it purchased the land in dispute has no land along the Lagos-Epe Expressway. The Ofiran Village is about four kilometres away from the land in dispute. The vast area of land along the Lagos-Epe Expressway belongs to Oyafunke family of Aiyeteju Village, while the Ofiran land is located in the interior behind Aiyeteju Village,” the statement of defence said.
But while the two parties were advancing their claims and defences, 11 other persons in a motion on notice, applied to be joined as applicants. They are Chief Ganiyu Raji (Baale of Ofiran); Alhaji Adio Shittu; Mr Olusegun Busari and Mr Ganiyu Tijani for themselves and on behalf of Ilari Ogun family.
Others are: Pa Sule Kafaru, head of Kafaru family, representing himself and the family; Mr Lasisi Olooto; Mr Muyideen Tijani, representing himself and Alimi family; Mr Omodele Oyafunke; Mr Theophilus Oyafunke and Chief Taiwo Oyafunke representing themselves and the Oyafunke family.
In their 31-paragraph affidavit to support their motion they said around 2001/2002 one Alhaji Olatunji Adenuga, who claimed to be a surveyor, approached them for a survey to be carried out on their land in Ofiran Village. Ofiran Village, according to them, is behind Aiyeteju Village, towards Marine River.
The man, they said, later told them about a man who was interested in their land.
“Alhaji Olatunji Adenuga later told us about a prospective buyer of land in person of Adedeji Obisanya. We welcome the idea, but when he said that they needed 50 acres of land along Lagos-Epe Express Road, we told him that we do not have land along the Express road. The small land we have is behind the land in dispute and which is for our farming and personal use only,” they said.
They continued: “Alhaji Olatunji Adenuga pointed to the land where we assembled for that meeting in Alfa Alamo, but we told him that the land belongs to Aiyeteju Village as Ofiran Village does not have land along the Express road, but farm land behind the express road.”
These persons said they later discovered that the prospective buyer that Alhaji Adenuga was representing was the claimant. The said Adenuga was later reported dead some months later.
They also said they told the claimant’s representative that Ofiran Village does not have up to 50 acres of land on the expressway
“We informed the claimant that the land along the express road belonged to Aiyeteju Village and that Ofiran Village land is located behind Aiyeteju
They further said they “never assigned or handed over any land to the claimant in this case. We did not sign any Deed of Assignment in favour of the claimant The land in dispute does not belong to Ofiran Village and Ofiran Village did not sell the land to the claimant; the signatures of the Applicants (their signatures) on the Deeds of Assignment pleaded by the claimant, particularly, that of the 1st Applicant, were forged; the Ofiran land, which the claimant negotiated for is different from the land in dispute and the land is far away from the land in dispute and the claim by the claimant that the Ofiran Village sold the land in dispute to the claimant is false and fraudulent because the land in dispute does not belong to Ofiran Village, but belongs to Oyafunke family of Aiyeteju Village.”
The claimant, it was said, flouted the orders of the court asking the parties to maintain the status quo. It went ahead to develop the land which necessitated the issuance of form 48 by the court. Justice Ipaye had ordered on July 3, this year, “that an order for the accelerated hearing of the claims be and is hereby made in lieu of the Motion on Notice for temporary restraining order dated 08/03/13; it is further ordered that parties maintain status quo before the beginning of hostilities namely: the claimant being in possession shall remain in possession and maintain her presence on the subject property as delineated on Survey Plan No 03l/56 A-C 89 Dated 10/09/1999 prepared by a licensed Surveyor, O.A Ojo.
While adjourning the case, the 11 applicants that wished to be joined in the suit were also asked to keep off the land pending the hearing and determination of the claims.”
The grounds upon which Pastor Ashimolowo was issued forms 48 and 49 are that, despite the forms served on him, the firm still continued with its construction on the property, “the subject matter of the suit, in flagrant disobedience of the status quo order made by the court.”
The case has since been assigned to Justice Morenike Obadina for further adjudication.
The Lagos State Government has concluded plans to host the year 2013 Domestic trade fair tagged Eko Expo, aimed at promoting Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and locally made products in the country.
Special Adviser to Governor Babatunde Fashola on Commerce and Industry, Mr. Oluseye Oladejo, who disclosed this in Ikeja, said foreign exhibitors from Indonesia and China were among the various organisations that have indicated interest to participate in the fair billed to hold at Lekki Free Trade Zone.
Oladejo explained that the government is organising the coming expo in collaboration with the Lekki Free Zone Development Company, as a result of the successes recorded with last year’s fair, where a total of 175 investors participated. He said the fair would further promote investment opportunities available at the zone, as well as provide platform for operators in small and medium scale industries to showcase what they do.
According to him, “the choice of Lekki Free Zone as the venue for this year’s fair is to familiarise the business community with the peculiar incentives offered by the zone and the need to invest therein.”
He listed such incentives to include, complete tax holiday from all federal, State and Local governments, taxes, rates, customs duties and levies; one-stop approval for all permits, operating license and incorporation papers.
