Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)’s Governorship Candidate in Lagos, Mr. Jimi Agbaje, at the weekend, decried corruption in land matters in the state.
He lamented what he called the continued shortchanging of land owners in the state, saying the situation in the last 19 years in the state was for the government to resell people’s land to speculators for a pittance.
Speaking at a town hall meeting at Ibeju-Lekki, as part of its ongoing electioneering, Agbaje accused the government of dispossessing land owners of their land without paying appropriate compensation.
But the state government, through the Commissioner for Information and Strategy Mr Kehinde Bamgbetan, dismissed Agbaje’s claim, saying it showed the governorship candidate’s ignorance about the state’s governance.
Accompanied by his running mate, Mrs. Haleemat Busari, Agbaje had tasked the people to join him to send away those he called “land usurpers in power”.
He said: “They have taken over all your lands here. What is happening now in Lagos State is that land owners are shortchanged and their land stolen. These people are after what they can get from investors, not after the interest of the citizens. They tell the people that they have negotiated on their behalf and they pocket the lion’s share of the amount collected from investors. Should we continue this way?”