Lagos State to Ban "Omo Onile"

The Lagos State House of Assembly is to begin deliberations on a bill seeking to frustrate and criminalise the activities of land grabbers, land speculators also known as ‘Omo Onile’ and regulate the activities of agents dealing with issues of land in the state.

This hint was dropped on the floor of the House by the Chairman, Committee on Judiciary, Public Complaints and Petitions, Sanai Agunbiade, while presenting a report about land tussle in the state.

Agunbiade informed his colleagues that the bill, a private member bill which already has the blessing of the executive arm of the state government, will soon be presented to the House for further deliberations and passage.

The lawmaker, in the report he would present, said one of the recommendations include providing a law to curb the excesses of land speculators.

“I want to inform this House that there is a bill to that effect. It is a private member bill.

“The Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice has made his inputs and the bill will soon be presented to the House.”

The lawmakers all agreed that it was a good idea to come up with such a bill against land speculators who have perpetrated violence in parts of the state.

In some situations, agents and omo-oniles sell a particular plot or parcel of land to several people and then bolt with their money. This results in violence and court cases among the buyers.

While commending Agunbiade, a member of the House, Ipoola Omisore, advised that the bill must specify who actually owns what land in the state since land is to the state what oil is to the Niger Deltans.

[PM News]