Ogun ADC, LP, CUPP Ask Senior Advocate To File Lawsuit Against Gov Abiodun, SSG, Aide Over Planned Demolition Of Assembly Quarters, Others

By Ayobami Ife, Abeokuta

Chieftains of the opposition African Democratic Congress(ADC), Labour Party(LP) and Coalition of United Political Party(CUPP) have written to a legal scholar, Professor Yemi Oke, SAN, of the M. J. S. law firm, directing him to file a lawsuit against the Ogun State Government, Governor Dapo Abiodun, Secretary to the Government of Ogun State, Tokunbo Talabi, Ministry of Housing and Commissioner for Housing; Jagunmolu Akande Omoniyi, over the state government plans to demolish the entire Commissioners Quarters and House Of Assembly Quarters, ostensibly to construct new ones.

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The said quarters were built by the then military administrator of Ogun State between 1976-1979 for the sole use of appointed commissioners and elected House of Assembly legislators.

The Daily Crucible reports that the Ogun State Government had recently announced plans to rebuild the 49-year-old House of Assembly Complex, Oke Mosan, as well as the legislative and commissioners’ quarters within the Ibara GRA, Abeokuta.

Justifying the planned demolition, the government said the decision followed extensive structural assessments by the Ministry of Housing, which revealed that the existing buildings—constructed in 1976—have become severely dilapidated and unsafe after over five decades of use.

It noted that despite multiple renovation attempts over the years, the structures have continued to deteriorate, resulting in high maintenance costs with minimal improvement.

Also, the Commissioner for Housing, Jagunmolu Akande Omoniyi, said the reconstruction project was necessary to align the State’s public infrastructure with modern safety, design, and efficiency standards.

Omoniyi, recently, explained that the decision was guided by the National Building Code of Nigeria (NBC, 2006), which stipulates that public buildings must meet minimum standards of safety and habitability.

He reckoned that the structures had exceeded their useful life—typically around 50 years—requiring either major rehabilitation or complete reconstruction, especially where repairs had proved uneconomical.

“The existing Legislative and Commissioners’ Quarters were constructed in 1976, nearly 50 years ago. Over the years, successive governments have spent enormous sums on repairs and maintenance, but these have yielded diminishing results. A technical evaluation conducted by the Ministry confirmed that the structures are no longer safe for habitation. In line with global best practices and the provisions of the National Building Code, the State Government has chosen to rebuild these facilities for long-term sustainability,” Omoniyi had said.

According to him, the move was driven by foresight and prudence, noting that delaying reconstruction could expose officials living in the quarters to greater risks.

“If we fail to act now, successive governments will face even greater financial and safety challenges. This decision is therefore about foresight, prudence, and the responsible management of public assets,” he stated.

However, the ADC, LP and CUPP chieftains have directed Prof. Oke, SAN, to ask for an order of the court on their behalf to perpetually restrain Dapo Abiodun and his administration from going ahead with any demolition and re-construction of assembly complex, legislative and commissioners quarters.

In a letter addressed to the legal giant and signed by the chieftains – Otunba Femi Sholuade; Chairman, ADC Ogun State and Chairman CUPP, Ogun State; Dr. Arabambi Abayomi, National Publicity Secretary (Lp) and Chairman, Egba New Initiative Agenda and Alhaji Moshood Adesina (Member CUPP), they urged the lawyer to pursue the requested court action against Abiodun and others if the documents they demanded from them regarding the planned demolition were not provided within a given period.

The documents being requested by opposition politicians included a certified True copy of the budget approval or any supplementary budget approvals by the state lawmakers, Certified true copy of the extracts of the Ogun State Executive Council Approval for the demolitions and re – construction, certified true copy of the memo by the Ministry of Housing seeking approval from the Ogun State Executive Council about the planned demolition and certified true copy of executive council approval to the ministry of housing for the demolitions and reconstruction

Below is a copy of the letter -:

Prof Yemi Oke, SAN ,Ph.d, FCTI, FACRB
Avenue
Ob1,M.J.Sasanjo Hilltop, Gra
Abeokuta,Ogun State

Dear Sir

We the undersigned had earlier in our respective political parties/ positions wrote a letter of request based on freedom of information act 2011 demanding various documents with respect of ogun state Government plans to demolish the entire Commissioners Quarters and House Of Assembly Quarters with the intention to constructs new one

We are aware that those buildings were build by the then military administrator of ogun state 1976-1979 for the sole use of commissioners and house of assembly members who are public Servants appointed and elected as and such can not be re allocated to any individuals out those specified above

We demanded from the ogun state Government and house of assembly the following documents

1 Certified True Copy of the Budget approval or any supplementary Budget approvals by the Ogun state house of assembly

2 Certified tru copy of the Extracts Of the Ogun State Executive Council Approval for the Demolitions and Re Construction

3 Certified true copy of the Memo by the Ministry of Housing seeking approval to the Ogun State Executive Council

4 Certified true copy of Executive Council approval to the Ministry of Housing for the demolitions and reconstruction

We hereby give you the authority to act on our behalf and take all necessary and lawful measures in a court of Competent jurisdiction against the following in order to perpetually restrain them from going ahead with any demolition and re construction once our request are not meet within the stipulated time as stated in the freedom of information act 2011 and in the constitution of Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended

1 Ogun State Government

2 Governor of Ogun State

3 Prince Dapo Abiodun

4 Secretary to Ogun State Government

5 Mr Tokunbo Talabi

6 Ogun State Ministry of Housing

7 Commissioner For Housing

8 Chief Jagunmolu Akande

We attached all copies of the acknowledgement letters

Thank you
Signed

_______________________
Otuba Femi Patrick Sholuade
Chairman , Adc Ogun State
Chairman Cupp Ogun State

________________________
Dr. Arabambi Abayomi
National Publicity Secretary (Lp)
Chairman Egba New Initiative Agenda