Residents of Oniru Estate Stranded for Two Months

Residents of Otassona Estate in the Oniru area of Lagos State have been stuck in their homes for nearly two months. This situation started after a property management company allegedly took over the estate.

The residents told PUNCH Metro on Sunday that they face restricted access to their homes. They worry that the blocked gates might stop emergency services from getting in when needed.

According to them, over 25 armed men, with court bailiffs, entered the estate on Monday, June 22. They sealed the gates and put up notices on houses, saying a court had given their principal ownership of the estate.

The residents say this has brought hardship to families, especially those with children and elderly members. Some cannot use their vehicles or get emergency help because the gates are locked.

A resident named Mimi shared her story. She was at work when she got a call about the takeover. She said, “On the 22nd of June, I was at work, and I got a call informing me that the estate had been besieged by several individuals, over 25 of them, who were armed.

“They had taken over the estate, claiming that they had a court order granting them possession. They sealed the premises, locked the gates from the inside and outside with padlocks and chains, so there was no going out or coming in.”

Mimi added that the men also spray-painted the gates, houses, and fences and put notices on residents’ doors. She said when she returned home, they tried to stop her from entering because her children were inside.

“On getting home that evening, they had even tried to prevent me from entering the estate. I had to insist and say that I am a resident and that I live here. I needed to get in because my children were in there,” she said.

Another resident, Aderonke Adeniji, said they were later told their properties had been taken and were asked to pay money to stay. She said they met with representatives of the group claiming ownership and were told the land, about 2,800 square metres, is worth around N4bn.

Adeniji explained, “They came up with this document that states that the principal now owns this property and everything that is in it. They requested some money, I think about N4.5m, and we said we couldn’t come up with it. We needed to meet with other people. There was back and forth and a lot of negotiation.”

The residents offered N1m but were told to meet with the alleged new owner. Adeniji said they had to hand over their phones and gadgets before the meeting began.

“She told us that we had to pay some kind of money, that this land is about 2,800 square metres, and worth about N4bn. He came up with so many figures, and we’ve been struggling since that time.”

Adeniji mentioned there are eight property owners in the estate, all with deeds of assignment and Governor’s Consent for their properties. She said when they could not agree on the payment, the alleged new owner threatened to build a wall at the estate entrance.

“A wall was subsequently erected at the entrance but was later demolished after Lagos State authorities were notified of the development. He now came and built a wall in front. So, since Lagos State was already notified, its officials came and saw the illegal wall, asked for demolition and then they brought it down,” she added.

A resident and broadcast journalist, Ireti Bakare-Yusuf, said the residents were not part of the original court case that supposedly led to the takeover. She said the case was against Otassona Gardens Limited, the company that developed the estate, and not against the residents.

Bakare-Yusuf stated, “There is this substantive case, which is the case of possession, which, by the way, wasn’t Otassona Estate that was taken to court. It was Otassona Gardens Limited, who were the developers, that was taken to court.

“We do not know them. They are on the Corporate Affairs Commission register, but we believe they no longer exist, because you can go and check them on CAC. Otassona Gardens Limited was taken to court in 2019. That’s the development company. Clearly, they don’t exist.

“At no given time was this estate informed or aware that there was such a case in court. Again, we are not Otassona Gardens Development Company. We are Otassona Estate, an estate of eight families, eight houses.”

She insisted that the residents do not owe the party claiming the estate any money. She said, “The overarching point here is, we, the residents of this estate, owe him nothing. We owe him absolutely nothing. He will not be getting a penny from us.”

The residents say the ongoing blockade has caused serious problems. Some cannot use their cars, and others have to walk through water to reach the estate gates. One resident, who wanted to remain anonymous, shared a scary experience when her four-month-old baby got sick at night.

She said, “We have a four-month-old baby, and we had a night when, around 1am or 2am, he was crying continuously and running quite a high temperature. It was quite a fright.

“We eventually resolved to dress up to take him to the hospital. But on dressing up and heading downstairs, we recalled that the car was parked four blocks away.”

The resident explained that they borrowed another car because theirs was locked inside the estate, but the borrowed car was parked far away and the car park closed at 11.30pm.

She added, “So, there was no car, no Uber, nothing. Thankfully, about an hour later, we were able to get the baby to sleep before we then visited the hospital a few hours in the morning.

“So, it was very traumatic. And of course, other issues are centred around even our cars. Just a few days ago, we found out that our batteries had run down and check-engine signs had come up because the cars were just parked there.”

Another resident, Enarime Mueller, said both children and elderly residents had to walk through water to get out of the estate, especially when schools were in session. She said, “To get to school, you have to wade through the water before you get to the gates. So, they can’t just jump into the car. They have to walk through the estate, wade through the water, tie up their shoes in a nylon bag and then put them on their backs.

“We can’t get water tankers into the estate because the gate is locked. So, in the event of an emergency, if we need water or there is a fire, the fire truck or emergency services can’t get into the estate because the gate is locked.”

Mueller also claimed that the estate sign was removed and a truckload of sand was dumped in front of the estate after the wall was demolished. She called these actions “subtle intimidation tactics” and said residents face a lot of inconvenience.

She said, “You are going to work in the morning, all dressed up. You have to come and wade through water to get to your car. We can’t park, we can’t take our cars out.”

Another resident, Cornelia Lewis, said she struggles to walk and feels the blockade has affected her movements. She said, “I can’t go to my office. I can’t just go out. I had to trek to the gate with my bad legs. I have bad legs. God has to help me. But walking down to the gate, it’s terrible. I don’t like it. I don’t like it. It’s not good at all.”

An elderly resident, Kudirat Fashola, described the situation as a terrible ordeal. She said the blockade has disrupted her plans to welcome family members. She said, “It has been a terrible ordeal. I have metal in both my legs. It is embarrassing to see all these signs all over the place.

“We were not expecting that opening the gate would become such a big deal. We are not really powerful. We believe we don’t have any case, but we have to now believe that there is a big problem when just opening the gate has become a terrible thing.”

Fashola added that she had to make other plans to receive her guests due to the restrictions. The residents called for urgent help to restore access to the estate. They want to prevent more hardship and ensure that emergency services can reach them when needed.

Attempts to contact the party claiming ownership of the estate were unsuccessful. A phone number on the notices on residents’ doors was called by our correspondent on Monday. The person who answered promised to send a statement regarding the claims but had not done so by the time this report was filed.