Ogunpa market tussle, Olubadan sues for peace, calm

By Richard Thomas, Ibadan

Following the disagreement between traders and developers at Ogunpa, Dugbe Alawo in Ibadan over some unallocated spaces, Olubadan of Ibadan land, Oba (Dr.) Olalekan Balogun {Alli Okunmade II) has called on the combatants to give the Palace some time to look into the matter.

The monarch made the appeal while reacting to the address made by Mr. Taiwo Adegunwa, the President of the traders group under the auspices of Ogunpa Labelabe Traders’ Association during the visit made to congratulate the monarch at his Alarere residence.

Oba Balogun, who said what’s paramount to his reign is peaceful co-existence of all within Ibadanland charged the traders said to be over 2,000 trading in all sorts of articles including food stuffs, wears, household materials among others to remain law-abiding and peaceful as the Palace intervenes in their matter.

The executive committee of the association, led by Adegunwa and Peter Adeyanju (Secretary) had told Olubadan that they had been having a running battle with a developer (names withheld) who had wanted to annex their spaces in addition to what was allocated to him by the past administration of the late Senator Abiola Ajimobi to build a shopping complex.

Asking the monarch to come to their aid, the traders said: “We have held three meetings with the developer and on each occasion, he told us that he was yet to be allocated the areas where we have our stalls as part of where to develop into modern shopping complex.

“Though, we are aware too that our areas were not part of this allocated land on which to build shopping complex which informed our resistance all along.  But, we had a disturbing report that the developer would come by the end of this month to take possession of our shops for demolition and building of the shopping complex and this informed our plea to Kabiyesi.”

He pleaded with Olubadan to come to their aid and ensure that their means of livelihood is not destroyed.

“We don’t have the financial means to purchase space out of the shopping complex built by the developer which goes for between N3m and N5m and this might have informed why our area was not originally allocated to him for reconstruction,” he added.