Ibadan flood: Residents of marked houses promise showdown with govt

AS the seven-day quit notice given by Governor Abiola Ajimobi to owners of structures on waterways in Ibadan metropolis expires on Wednesday, residents of houses marked for demolition have vowed to resist the planned demolition.
This came as some of the rescuers who helped survivors of the flood disaster that inflicted havoc on Ibadan metropolis are asking for compensation.
Though, some residents at Odo-Ona Elewe claimed that over 200 houses had been marked, the Oyo State Government, through Governor Abiola Ajimobi’s Senior Special Adviser on Public Communication, Dr. Festus Adedayo, said it had not counted the number of houses that would be affected.
The aggrieved residents said they had no other place to go.
One Boluwatife Owolabi who lives at Odo Ona Elewe, said the residents would resist any attempt by the State to demolish their houses.
He said the government was yet to make alternative accommodation for them as they had nowhere to go now if the government made good its threat.
Owolabi, who spoke on behalf of other residents, said she was not sure if the government had determined its cost before taking the decision.
They complained that the notice was too short for them to get another accommodation and pleaded with the government to extend the deadline to them.
It will be recalled that Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Mr. Bosun Oladele had last week said that there was no going back on the deadline given by the governor.
Senator Ajimobi had sternly warned that his administration would not compensate those who deliberately flouted the law that states some reasonable distance should be maintained to the river bank.(Vanguard Newspaper)