Road expansion: Ogun begins payment of compensation

Ogun Stategovernment hasbegun the payment of compensation to landlords whose houses were demolished in the ongoing road project at Totoro/Oke Sokori area of Abeokuta, the state capital.The contract for the 2.4 kilometres road which was awarded to the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC), will gulp N1.3 billion.Speaking during the exercise, the Director-General of the Bureau of Lands and Survey, Mrs Ronke Sokefun, said that the government had earmarked N300 million for payment of compensation to the affected landlords.She added that the compensation would be based on valuation undertaken by government's estate valuers.Sokefun, who is also the Special Adviser to the state governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, on Land Matters, said that the highest compensation to be paid was N8 million, adding that N61,200 would be the least.She assured the public that the road construction would be completed within the next eight months.Sokefun said that compensation would be paid based on the extent of damage to the property, adding that the government used other criteria apart from land titles.'I know that in computing, I saw cheques of over N6 million and N8 million, the government is a sensitive one which is aware of the plight of the people,' she said.In their reactions, the affected landlords expressed regret that the amount given to them did not commensurate with their demolished properties.A beneficiary, Oyeleye Alade, who owned a 3-storey building along the expansion site, contended that the money given to him was below his expectation.'We were initially targeting N6 million, but at the end of the day, we got N2 million.'Another beneficiary, Mr Muftau Yunus, also claimed that the money given to him did not commensurate with the worth of his property.However, Bilkis Oriowo, commended the state government for what she described as 'a well-thought out and rare gesture.'Another beneficiary, Animasaun Kolawole, also said that the money would go a long way in helping him to relocate.
Click here to read full news..