By Our Correspondent
Adagbe community of Abagana in Njikoka Local Government Area of Anambra State, Southeast, Nigeria has cried out for help over land speculators that invaded their place and took hold of their ancestral land that were used for commercial farming.
The land estimated to be over forty plots, according to the village leader, Mr Paul Umeadi, were located at Mgbugbo, Ogbubuaja, Mkpukpa, Agbalidi, Ozowata and Okponum farm lands belonging to the village.
In an effort to secure parcels of the lands and to wade off speculators, the village Development Association put up public announcement in the entire Abagana community warning the general public that the aforementioned lands are never for sale.
”Any land sales/lease or agreement made with any person or representative in the guise of Adagbe or anybody claiming entitlement to the lands is at buyers’ risk as Adagbe Abagana Development Association is not selling their lands.”
In a strongly worded letter, Ricky Tarfa and Co – which acts as the Counsel to the Adagbe community, sent to Tony Dibor and Associates, said, ” We are duly informed by our clients that sometime in 2018, you (Tony Dibor and Associates) purported to be in alliance with Ministry of Lands, Anambra State, for creation of layout in our clients’ Mgbugbo/Ogbubuaja/Mkpukpa/Agbalidi/Ozowata/Okponum farm lands situate at Adagbe Village,Abagana
We are further informed that you are in collusion with renowned land speculators within and outside Abagana community whom you also work in alliance.
One of the hired labour of the speculators on duty
Pursuant to the said alliances, you mobilized bulldozers and other heavy duty machines and equipment into our clients’ aforementioned farm lands, destroyed the farms, uprooted all the economic trees on the land and began to commit wasters on the farm lands purporting to be making layouts as it pleases you and the land speculators.”
In order to retrieve the lands from the speculators, the village leadership, in a letter dated 12th April, 2022 and signed by its Chairman, Chief Anayo Etusi and Secretary, Felix Umeadi, sent to Anambra State Governor, Prof. Charles Soludo, requesting for his ”urgent intervention to approve that the Anambra State Ministry of Lands and Planning issue appropriate land title documents for Agu Adagbe parcels of land at Adagbe Abagana to the owner – Adagbe Abagana community.”
The letter went further to assert that the Village Association has ”been making rigorous efforts towards strategic plans and policies to bring about meaningful development in critical sectors like agriculture, including associated value-chain Small and Medium Scales Industries, provision of infrastructural facilities and accountability.
Members of the Adagbe leadership
”Part of the successes to the efforts and a major milestone refers to the Study and Design of Abagana Multipurpose Dam Project in 2010 by the Federal Government of Nigeria through the Federal Ministry of Water Resources under the Anambra-Imo River Basin Development Authority and the feasibility dam site location remains at Adagbe Abagana.”
The parcels of land is a large expanse of land alleged inheritance specifically belonging to the Adagbe Abagana Community, bordering neighbouring community like Eziowelle. It forms part of the lands making up the proposed dam catchment area and with multipurposes capabilities including agricultural potentials for cultivation of rice and other cash crops, agro-allied value chain processing facilities, marketing centers, etc.
