Land acquisition: Kwara govt pays N9.5m to owners

Kehinde Akinpelu, Ilorin

Chairman, Kwara State House of Assembly Committee on Lands and Housing, Alhaji Adamu Usman said the state government has paid N9.5 million as compensation to 24 land owners and farmers in the state. The land was acquired by the state government for commercial and industrial purposes. Usman told the Daily Times in Ilorin that the land acquired covers 25 hectares in Amoyo on the Ilorin-Ajase-Ipo road in lfelodun Local Government Area of the state. Usman said that the land owners had received their cheques from the Director-General of the State Bureau of Lands, Alhaji Ibrahim Salman. He also said that the land was acquired for industrial and commercial purposes in order to promote socio-economic activities in Amoyo area in particular and the state in general. The compensation to the affected owners, he added, was to give them a sense of belonging in governance of the state. The lawmaker advised the land owners to make proper use of the money to justify government’s good intention in effecting the payment. Usman acknowledged the state government’s efforts toward ensuring transparency in the governance of the state. Salman, on his part, said that payment of compensation to those whose lands were acquired by government would be a continuous exercise. He said the N9.5 million was paid to the 24 land owners after an assessment of the economic benefits on the land. Salman disclosed that 18 out of the land owners were farmers. The Director-General said that the state government would allocate the acquired lands to develop.