Some concerned youths and members of the public under the aegis of Justice League Chamber of Nigeria, have on Tuesday protested in Abuja over the demolition of the house of ex-Tonto Dike’s lover, Joseph Egbri, popularly known as Kpokpogri.
The PUNCH reported on Monday that the same group had threatened mass action if the Federal Capital Territory Development Administration did not compensate Kpokpogri for demolishing his house.
Kpokpogri had on Saturday alleged that his building at Guzape worth over N700m was unlawfully demolished by the FCDA without notice.
In a petition signed by the Abuja chairman of the group, Jude Vodah, titled ‘Demand for Immediate Compensation of Prince Joseph Kpokpogri over Illegal Demolition of his N700 Million House at Guzape Hills, Abuja, by FCDA Officials on Saturday, May 14, 2022’, addressed to the Director of the FCTA, the grouped said it was shocked by the demolition of Egbri’s house, and subsequently called for compensation.
The petition partly read, “We gathered that the attacks on the right to own property by Prince Kpokpogri guaranteed under Section 43 of the 1999 Constitution started in February 2022 and continued till May 2022 when the worst was done. There are records that the demolition has left scores of persons injured, and hospitalised while rendering Prince Kpokpogri homeless.
“It is obvious that the attacks and demolition succeeded with the tacit approval of the Minister of the FCT in the person of Honourable Musa Bello. Little wonder, the men who came to demolish the building said they are acting on “order from above”.
“We condemn these infringements in very strong terms, and call on the Federal Government to take immediate steps to redress these injustices by compensating, resettling, and rehabilitating the displaced Prince Kpokpogri without further delay. It is our demand that the Minister should show how a mansion on a hill inside an estate was built on the highway. We want him to also prove that the house was not approved by the FHA, FCDA, and the Ministry of FCT.
“We are surprised that there was no prior notice before the demolition. Even if notice was given to Prince Kpokpogri, why was he not allocated an alternative land or building in Abuja before the illegal demolition?
“We condemn in totality the role of security agencies, especially the Nigerian Police Force and the Nigerian Security and Civil Defense Corps in the demolition saga. No safety measures were ever adopted during the demolition to protect the children, visitors, staff, and the most vulnerable members of the house.
“This led to physical injury, loss of documents, properties, and means of livelihood.”
The group which said the petition was rejected, further said, “Let it be known that if the Ministry of the FCT, FCDA, and FHA fail or refuse to compensate Prince Kpokpogri in the next seven days, we will take this mass protest to another level. A stitch in time, they say, saves nine and we hope that our demand will be met for the sake of peace.”
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