— Stop plot to demolish quarters NLC, TUC tells Aiyedatiwa
—- Decision is for urban renewal – Govt
By Dayo Johnson, Akure
Labour leaders in Ondo State and the state government are on a collision course over the alleged mass displacement of civil servants over the planned redevelopment of the Alagbaka Government Staff Quarters in Akure, the state capital.
While the state government alleged that the civil servants sublet the government quarters at exorbitant rates, the labour leaders described the claim by government as “not only a cheap lie, but a calculated attempt to paint workers as profiteers in order to justify the eviction plan.
A statement issued on the vexed matter by the state chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Comrade Olapade Ademola Adeniji, Comrade Fatuase Clement Chairman, TUC Chairman and Comrade Segun Ajiböye Chairman Joint Negotiation council (JNC), accused the state government of land grabbing thereby displacing hundreds of civil servants.
The union leaders described the reasons adduced for the demolition by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Infrastructure, Lands and Housing, Engr. Ayorinde Abiola Olawoye, as a ” deliberate misinformation, half-truths, and the thinly veiled insults against civil servants.
“We challenge the Special Adviser to publish verifiable evidence to support his wild and defamatory allegations.
“Until he does, we consider his statement as not just false, but malicious.
“It is disturbing that in a time when citizens -including government workers- are battling economic hardship, rising food and fuel costs, and housing shortages, what the government considers a priority is an eviction plan disguised as urban renewal.
“The Alagbaka Staff Quarters have served as a critical buffer against the housing deficit in Akure for decades.
“Displacing workers from their homes without any clear resettlement or Compensation plan is cruel, anti-labour, and completely unacceptable.
“We take particular exception to the condescending assertion by Engr. Olawoye that “less than one percent” of the state workforce resides in the quarters.
“Since when dịd the number of people affected determine the worth of their dignity? Even if it were just one family, the government has a responsibility to treat its workers with empathy and not as disposable statistics.
“Let it also be known that the so-called engagement with Labour was superficial as there was no briefings whatsoever.
“Organised Labour is not against development. we welcome genuine urban renewal efforts that follow due process and uphold human dignity.
“We call on His Excellency, Governor Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa, to listen to the voice of reason and direct an immediate halt to all plans that will force civil servants into the streets.
“No government should derive satisfaction from turning its workforce into victims of eviction.
“The Organised Labour stands firmly with every affected worker and their families.
“We will resist all forms of oppression, humiliation, and disregard for the welfare of workers under any quise.
“Let it be known that an attack on one worker is an attack on all.
But in a swift response, the state government, insisted that the action was for “urban renewal in line with global best practices and the state governor’s sustainable infrastructure development agenda.
The Special Adviser to Ondo State Governor on Infrastructure, Lands and Housing, Ayorinde Abiola Olawoye, said that “The Alagbaka Staff Quarters, consisting of 69 bungalows of 53 residential units and 16 office units, was developed over 30 years ago and currently sits on 31.3 hectares, equivalent to approximately 481 standard land plots.
Olawoye added that ” Over the years, these structures have suffered neglect, with no significant renovation or infrastructural upgrade. The structures are now largely substandard, unsafe, and unsuitable for modern habitation.
“What this administration envisions is not just reconstruction, but a holistic transformation into a modern urban housing estate that reflects the aspirations of a 21st-century Ondo State.
“This project is a strategic component of the state’s Urban Regeneration and Infrastructure Optimization Plan.
“The current occupants, many of whom the quarters have been sublet to by the supposed valid occupants at exorbitant rates, represent less than one percent of the state’s workforce.
Olawoye said that ” The government is engaging labour leaders to ensure that those who will be affected are taken care of.
“The claim that government is rendering civil servants homeless is, therefore, a deliberate falsehood designed to stoke public sentiment against a project that is clearly in the best interest of the people.
According to him ” the redevelopment of the Alagbaka Housing Units will stand as a legacy project, free from political manipulation, rooted in transparency, and executed with professional excellence.
Olawoye declared that ” It is a bold statement that Ondo State is ready for true urban transformation, and no amount of distraction will derail that vision.
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