LCDA creation: Protests rock Ekiti, as residents claim manipulation in location of headquarters
By Mike Adebayo, Ado-Ekiti
The Residents of Ipoti-Ekiti community in Ijero Local Government Areas of Ekiti State have took to the streets, carrying different placards of various inscriptions in a peaceful rally amidst solidarity songs.
The protesters expressed dissatisfaction with the alleged injustice over an attempt by some powerful forces within Ijero Local Government to relocate the newly created LCDA headquarters to Ikoro-Ekiti from Ipoti, the original location.
The aggrieved protesters blocked major roads in the town and nearly prevented the Owa-Ajero, HRM Oba Dr Adebayo Adewole and his entourge from passing through the town on a social function to Usi-Ekiti, a nearby community in the area.
In a chat with Nigerian NewsDirect shortly after the protests, one of the aggrieved residents simply identified as Adeoye disclosed that it smacks of injustice and arrogance of power that for some unexplainable reasons some people would openly deny Ipoti people’s rights, saying such open robbery would be fought with the last blood in their veins.
According to him, “We have been on this struggle since 2014 during Governor Kayode Fayemi’s first tenure and Ipoti community was named as the headquarters of the proposed Irede LCDA with adjoining towns such as Odo-Owa, Ejiyan-Ekiti and Ilukuno-Ekiti and nowhere was Ikoro mentioned.
“We have presented our memo and every requirement including a befitting infrastructure had been made available for the take-off of the Council Secretariat before the last administration came to truncate the process,” he said.
According to a video that went viral, the Royal father of the town, HRM Oba James Oladipupo Kolade, Oluwademilade 1, thanked his subjects for their peaceful conduct while appealing to them not to take laws into their hands by resorting to violence.
“I’m in support of your rightful agitation because it is your future that is at stake and your inalienable right to self determination.
“I however want to assure you that our amiable Governor has no hand in the shenanigans of purpoted relocation of the Council Secretariat to Ikoro-Ekiti which to me was at best, an error which cannot see the light of the day,” he stated.
Speaking further, Oba Olupoti disclosed that an average Ekiti indigene knows that following the 2014 declaration, the LCDA in his domain has taken-off and was running smoothly for almost four months in the first tenure of Governor Fayemi’s administration before it was truncated by the immediate past administration.
“The question that begs for answer is; if the running continued unabated, would the Headquarters magically transform itself to another location?” Oba Kolade queried.
