Kwara Community Rejects Govt Boundary Demarcation, Causing Communal Crisis

The Offa Descendant Union (ODU), which represents all sons and daughters of Offa, rejected the Unity Road built by the previous administration in Kwara State over the weekend.

As a solution to the long-running boundary dispute between Offa and Erin Ile towns, the Unity Road was built to serve as a border between the two towns.

A parking lot dispute erupted recently, sparking a four-decade communal dispute that has resulted in several deaths and the destruction of properties worth millions of naira.

In an interview with journalists in Offa, some town elders, led by retired justice olabanji Orilonise, spoke out against the boundary demarcation between the two towns, claiming it was a violation of section 8 (4) of the 1999 constitution (as amended).

The indigenes who advocated for peaceful coexistence between the two communities, on the other hand, urged the state government to uphold the “Kere Ipinle” boundary resolutions established by the military administrations of Colonel Ibrahim Taiwo and Colonel Ogar, which he claimed were duly signed by both communities.

They also advised the state government to fully occupy the Buffer Zone, as defined in Kwara state Legal Notices 1, 2, 3, and 4 of 1997.

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While calling for historical consideration in finding a long-term solution to the long-running communal crisis, ODU also urged absolute sincerity as the two rival communities awaited feedback from the state government’s recently formed committee on the subject.

Orilonise, who stated that allocating land to anyone or any community was not the responsibility of the court or any individual, also stated that border demarcation was solely the responsibility of a trained surveyor.

Orilonise, speaking about the two Supreme Court rulings on the dispute, said the Erin-Ile community should understand that the Apex Court rulings of 1973 and 2018 did not award any land to Erin-Ile, despite what had been widely reported.