We cry out today as people under an emergency situation. We the inhabitants of the following coastal villages; Iwerekun, Awofin, Odusina and Solu Orumija are currently facing extinction of our approved village excisions by the whimsical realignment of the proposed coastal road site.
We are overjoyed that, at last, we are witnessing the commencement of the Coastal Road construction which was long anticipated. However, we are saddened by the sudden realignment of the proposed Right of Way (RoW) upon commencement of the road construction. We have maintained the old site lying in the swamp behind our villages untouched for over 30 years since it was marked, but we are shocked at the sudden change of the road path which is now directly running through the village.
While we do not have a problem if the road would expand either ways to claim some added portion to the old site as known in order to accommodate rail track or other transportation facilities, it is however not the case as a new 100meters site is suddenly marked within the village for the road afresh from the previous 90meters. This is done while abandoning the old site that we all know. Please note that after observing the required setback from the shoreline, the village is only about 150 meters left in entire width. Within the 150meters, there is another setback from both the community road at the front and the setback for the Coastal Road behind, which makes the useful land in the village to be about only 100meters. The new 100meters RoW marked out in the village will therefore wipe out the entire villages.
Although some other communities have sufficient widths that can accommodate a fresh 100meter and still have some width left to continue to exist, such is not the case with Iwerekun, Solu Orumija, Awofin and Odusina as the new realignment leaves almost nothing left for us to continue to exist.
Asides the new 100meters marking into the village, there is also about 72meters gap created between the old and new site, which makes the entire land claimed from the village running into about 270meters.
The two questions we ask are as follows:
- What purpose will the old site now serving as it is now abandoned? Are villagers now allowed to shift back into the old site since the Government is taking a new one? The Government has been silent on this particular question and it makes us suspect some foul play.
- Why was there no consultation with the people ahead of the new road design to allow for their inputs to accommodate the new redesign without entirely wiping out communities?
Our palace, houses, farmlands, school, hospital have now been marked for demolition. We call on the Federal Government of Nigeria led by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Honorable Minister for Works, Mr. Dave Umahi as well as all well-meaning Nigerians to rise to our plight as we are facing an emergency situation. Simply yield to our cry and take the simplest solution of reverting back to the old design of land still preserved in the swamp undisturbed.
Thank you!
Baale’s of Iwerekun, Solu Orumija, Awofin and Odusina villages.
