Osun

Youths Carpet Osun Govt Over Failure To Address House Agents Excesses

BySodiq Yusuf

PublishedMay 9, 2025

Youths in Osun State have once again expressed displeasure over what they described as ‘negligence’ on the part of the state government to address the excesses of house agents in the state.

According to the youths, they have exploited several proactive civil and proactive steps within their power to address the issue through submission of appeals to both Osun government and the House of Assembly, urging them to swiftly intervene to implement solutions that will curb the excessiveness of the agents.

But according to them, no meaningful action has been taken by the government.

This was made known by the Speaker, Youth Assembly of Nigeria (YAN), Osun Chapter, Comrade Hammed Fatomi during a press conference in Osogbo, on Tuesday.

According to Fatomi, Osun in the recent time, have become a hotbed for fraudulent and exploitative practices by house agents and landlords who operate freely without regulation, oversight, or consequences under a broken system.

The speaker described the situation as not just an inconvenience but a crisis that has spiraled beyond individual struggles into a societal emergency.

The Youth body noted that the silence from the government is unacceptable and disheartening, adding that it sends a dangerous message; that the voices of the people, particularly the youths who form the largest and most demography in the state ,can be ignored.

Fatomi, however, called for the immediate implementation of the Agency Regulatory Bill passed by the Assembly and constitution of a Regulatory Body to oversee house agents and landlords’ activities in the state while giving the government a seven days ultimatum or face a protest from their members.

The text of the press conference reads partly: “In recent times, our cities and towns have become a hotbed for fraudulent and exploitative practices by house agents and landlords who operate freely without regulation, oversight, or consequences under a broken system. What we are witnessing is not just an inconvenience, it is a crisis that has spiraled beyond individual struggles into a societal emergency.

“Every week, young people such as students, job seekers, newly employed civil servants, newlyweds, and young professionals relay stories that are as heartbreaking as they are outrageous from their experiences dealing with these greedy and dubious agents and landlords:

“Such as house agents demanding exorbitant inspection fees without any guarantee of securing a home.

Or agents and landlords collecting advance payments or agency fees from desperate house hunters only to end up disappearing or deny access to the said property afterward.

“Or victims having no legal channel for redress or retrieve their hard-earned money.

Or students seeking off-campus accommodation left stranded or tricked to live in inhumane conditions.

And most of all, agents deliberately inflating the cost of accommodation by doubling or tripling the fee.

“These actions are not just unethical, they are also criminal. And they are happening on a daily basis, unchecked, and unpunished, worsening the housing crisis in the state.

Our Assembly, in our duty as the voice of the youth constituency, took several proactive civil and diplomatic steps within our power to address this issue. We made and submitted several appeals to both the Osun State Government and the State House of Assembly, urging them for swift intervention to implement solutions that will curb the excessiveness of these agents and landlords, create a redress mechanism for aggrieved tenants, and ensure strict compliance with rules and protection of the people’s right for fair and affordable shelter.

“Till this very moment, no meaningful action has been taken. No acknowledgment. No engagement initiated. No official response.

This silence is both unacceptable and disheartening, and it sends a dangerous message: that the voices of the people, particularly the youths who form the largest and most dynamic demography in this state, can be ignored.”

Sodiq Yusuf

Sodiq Yusuf is a trained media practitioner and journalist with considerable years of experience in print, broadcast, and digital journalism. His interests cover a wide range of causes in politics, governance, sports, community development, and good governance.