Members of Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) in Iree, Boripe local government area of Osun have appealed to Governor Ademola Adeleke, to intervene in what they alleged as an intentional victimisation by a former State Secretary of the PDP in the state, Chief Yinka Adeojo.
The union disclosed that if an urgent action is not taken on the matter, the association feared that their members will be jobless.
According to the commercial transport workers, the crisis began when Adeojo, who is an indigene of Iree, said he had bought the piece of land where the commercial drivers are using as their park from a chief, and that they should therefore, vacate the land.
RTEAN, it was learnt, have been on the land, opposite the town’s post office, allocated to it by the government, since 2010.
It was gathered RTEAN got the approval to make use of the piece of land thirteen years ago, via a letter made available to them by one A.O Fatoye which was dated May 19, 2011 and signed on behalf of the then chairman of Boripe local government.
According to the union chairman, Sunday Adeosun, Adeojo once laid claim to the land around 2011/2012, saying he bought it from a chief, then moved to take over the land but was vehemently resisted by the association and eventually led to a legal tussle.
According to Adeosun, the union however won the case at the Ikirun High court in Suit Number: HIK/4/2012, with the court awarding N10,000 against Adeojo.
The statement reads: “To our surprise, Adeojo in connivance with leadership of Iree Progressive Association (IPA) came with another claim immediately the Supreme Court of Nigeria declared Governor Nurudeen Ademola Adeleke as the authentic winner of 2022 Osun gubernatorial election.
“They claimed that because there was a robbery incident in Iree that affected the two commercial banks in the town in 2021, we should no longer use the place as our motor park.
“Let us even assume that we consider the reasons given as plausible, which one poses security threat between our motor park that is eleven buildings away from the commercial banks and the Oluomo Shopping Complex where there are business entities including a filling station, salon, a car wash, a game center, laundry?
“Will it be possible for someone who is not our member to park his vehicle at our motor park without being questioned? the answer is ‘no’.
“We know that Governor Adeleke will not allow injustice because some of our members are already of a considered opinion that Chief Adeojo is planning to get what the court denied him through the backdoor. We have more than 100 members and so many lives are attached to ours for livelihood.
“We urge the governor to caution the local government officials and others who are planning to send us packing ostensibly at the instance of those interested in the piece of land, which is even a setback.
“We are law abiding citizens, we are not partisans, we believe in the administration of Governor Adeleke and we will continually pray for the success of his administration,” he said.
