Over 500 people in Cross River State have staged a peaceful protest against the Cross River State Government after attempts to take over a parcel of land allegedly belonging to the Nigerian Navy in Calabar
The people who came under name Cross River State Progressives Forum (CRISPROF) on Tuesday took to major Streets of Calabar with various placards alleged that the state government denied the people progress and development brought in by the Navy.
Speaking at various stopping points, the spokesperson of the group Barr. Eyo Ekpo Nsa said that the group decided to take to the streets in order to express their grievances against what it described as an attempt by state government to take the state anticlockwise.
They alleged that the Gov. Ben Ayade’s led administration had a penchant for grabbing land without recourse to due process and charged the Attorney General of Cross River State, to refer the state Governor to section 49 of the land use Act so as to call his principal to order.
The group appealed to the Governor to instead focus his attention on addressing issues that are related to insecurity, kidnapping which has unleashed fear on residents of the state, stressing that they were shocked to see that a lofty project like erecting a hotel by the navy is being opposed by a sitting governor.
“This is something that other people in other states are struggling to have, unfortunately our state government wants to take the land which had been occupied by the navy in the last 40years. By section 49 of the Land Use Act, if a federal Government Agency has occupied a land before the coming into force of the Land Use Act of 1978 no state government has the power to revoke their right of occupancy”.
The group spokesman stated, “If the state Government wants to take over any parcel of land it should follow due process. “They have to publish a notice of revocation of right of occupancy, unfortunately, this state governor has published none, instead they go about grabbing peoples’ land. Are all these parcels of land being taken in the public interest or for personal use. The answer is no!
Reacting, the state Commissioner for information, Comrade Asu Okang said the state Government under the watch of Gov. Ben Ayade has no intention to take over the parcel of land in contention.
He said that the said parcel of land used to be an annex of Peregrino (An arm of Government’s house) which government gave to the navy and wondered why it wasn’t the navy personal who are leading the protest but youths who feel it has become their right to protest, “As a responsible Government, we have no intention to cause pain to the Navy,” he stated.
