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Saraki Has No Title on Revoked Property, Kwara Govt Insists

Published

6 years ago

January 6, 2020

Eric

The Chairman, Committee on the Review of Kwara State Government Properties from 1999 to 2019, Senator Suleiman Ajadi, said on Sunday that the controversy over the reclamation of the land bordering the civil service clinic was needless.

He said the Kwara State Government had only recovered a property that originally belonged to it but was unlawfully diverted for private use.

Ajadi, who addressed journalists in Ilorin on Sunday, explained that the Asa Investment Company owned by the late Dr Olusola Saraki never applied to the state government for allocation of the land.

He also said that neither the firm nor the Saraki family, was issued with documents that gave it the right to occupy or erect structures on the property, located on plot 1,3 and 5, Civil Service Clinic, Ilofa Road, GRA, Ilorin.

Ajadi said, “Many of the publications on the land were either erroneous or mischievous as there are no proofs anywhere that the land ever belong to Asa Investment Limited.

“The issue of the land in question came under the terms of reference of this committee which considered several other properties of government and submitted its recommendations in July 2019.

“As was the case with all the properties looked into by the committee, the committee’s recommendations were based on strictly available records from the archives of government.

“Based on the available records, the committee did not see proof of any payments nor an approved Right of Occupancy even though there was a letter of allocation in principle.

“In reaching its conclusions, the committee noted the foundation work with erected columns at some areas of the larger segment of the land.

“The committee also noted that the land in question was also a part of a larger parcel of land, part of which has been developed into the Civil Service Clinic and Secretariat complex, now housing the state Ministry of Finance, among others.

“Finally, based on the existing convention that land acquired by government in overriding public interest cannot be converted to private use, unless under extraneous circumstances which requires the express approval of the governor of the state, the committee did not see a case made for the land and neither was there any approval from the governor of the state to convert it to private use.”

Ajadi explained that he was the Commissioner for Finance and Economic Planning in the state between 1994 and 1996 when the building presently housing the Ministry of Finance was constructed.

He said, “There were massive foundation with structured pillars and iron rod on the land before it was taken over by the ASA Investment Limited.

“When it was taken over, the foundation was removed, but there is a foundation on the portion of the land that was not touched and it is still there now.”

Ajadi, who addressed the journalists in company with members of his committee, described as false, the claims that the government demolished a structure belonging to the late Senator Olusola Saraki.

The Punch

Featured

Tinubu Nominates Oyedele As Minister of State for Finance, Moves Anite-Uzoka to Budget Ministry

Published

12 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Eric

A statement signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy Bayo Onanuga, has announced that “President Bola Tinubu has nominated Taiwo Oyedele as the minister of state for finance, replacing Doris Anite-Uzoka.

“Mrs Anite-Uzoka will now move to the Ministry of Budget and National Planning, as the Minister of State, her third portfolio in the administration.

“President Tinubu has today conveyed the nomination of Mr Oyedele to the Senate for confirmation in a letter to the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.

“Until President Tinubu nominated him as a minister, Mr Oyedele from Ikaram, Akoko, Ondo State, was the chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, which overhauled Nigeria’s tax system.

“Mr Oyedele, 50, is an economist, accountant and public policy expert.

“He attended Yaba College of Technology, where he obtained a Higher National Diploma (HND) in accountancy and finance. He attended Oxford Brookes University and earned a BSc in applied accounting.

“He also completed executive education programmes at the London School of Economics, Yale University, the Gordon Institute of Business Science, and the Harvard Kennedy School.

“Mr Oyedele spent 22 years of his working career at PwC, joining in 2001 and rising to become the Fiscal Policy Partner and Africa Tax Leader.

“Mr Oyedele is also a professor at Babcock University in Ogun State and a visiting scholar at the Lagos Business School.”

Featured

Defection: Atiku’s Son, Adamu, Resigns As Adamawa Commissioner

Published

17 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Eric

Adamu Abubakar, the first son of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, has resigned as Adamawa State’s commissioner for works and energy development, days after Governor Ahmadu Fintiri defected from the Peoples Democratic Party to the All Progressives Congress.

Abubakar’s resignation letter, dated 2 March 2026, was addressed to the governor through the Secretary to the State Government. He gave no reason for his departure.

The timing is pointed. Fintiri announced his defection to the APC in a statewide broadcast last Friday, saying his cabinet and the PDP’s state structure had moved with him. Within 24 hours, 22 commissioners and special advisers publicly announced they were following suit. Abubakar, whose father remains one of the PDP’s most prominent national figures, was not among them.

In a statement issued Monday night, Abubakar’s media aide Abdulaziz Jauro said the former commissioner thanked the governor for the opportunity to serve and pledged continued loyalty to the administration’s developmental agenda. He also expressed gratitude to his father “for granting him the moral support and blessing to serve the people of Adamawa State” — a line that, read in context, suggests Atiku was consulted on the decision.

Abubakar said his resignation was not a withdrawal from public life. “This does not mark the end of his commitment to public service,” the statement read, “but rather the beginning of new avenues for developmental collaboration.”

The resignation leaves unresolved the question of whether it reflects a political break with the governor over his defection or a personal decision unconnected to the broader party realignment now reshaping Adamawa’s political landscape.

Featured

DSS Nabs Man over Assassination Attempt on Peter Obi

Published

19 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Eric

Nigeria’s Department of State Services (DSS) has detained a man in connection with the recent attack and alleged assassination threats targeting Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi.

According to AIT, the shooting incident took place on February 24, 2026, in Benin City, Edo State, during a political gathering attended by Obi and several figures from the African Democratic Congress (ADC). The meeting was hosted by former APC National Chairman, John Oyegun. Gunmen reportedly opened fire at the venue, causing panic and forcing attendees to disperse for safety.

According to security sources, shortly after the attack, an individual identified as Udeme Monday Stephen allegedly took to social media claiming responsibility and issuing additional threats against Obi, warning of further violence.

Intelligence officials reportedly initiated swift investigations, employing digital tracing and forensic tools that led to the arrest of the 26-year-old suspect in Rivers State. He is said to be a teacher at a private secondary school in the Eliozu area of Obio-Akpor Local Government Area.

The suspect remains in DSS custody and is expected to face prosecution. The agency reiterated its commitment to responding to credible threats and safeguarding lives and national interests without bias.