News
Land dispute: CSOs Protest Alleged Police Harassment, Demand IGP’s Intervention
Mariam Sanni
A coalition of over 40 civil society organizations has staged a peaceful protest in Abuja, calling on the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, to intervene in alleged police harassment of staff affiliated with the Olusco Group.
The protesters, led by coalition spokesperson Tunde John, said the demonstration followed a petition submitted by the Olusco Group, which accused officers from the IGP Monitoring Unit of continued intimidation and unlawful interference at various company sites in the Federal Capital Territory.
John stated that the harassment persisted despite a valid Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Olusco and the Performing Musicians Employers’ Association of Nigeria (PMAN), which grants Olusco legal control over the affected locations.
He further noted that a court order had been secured, restraining the police and any third parties from disrupting the company’s operations.
The coalition warned that failure to act swiftly could lead to unrest, urging authorities to step in before tensions escalate.
The group also alleged that CSP Lamin, reportedly serving under the IGP’s supervision, had led several of the operations. During one such incident, a staff member of the Olusco Group was allegedly shot.
“Relating to the harassment men of the police are doing on these sites, and so olusco group, wrote a petition to us, and there’s need for us to step in, in the interest of Nigerian police and in the interest of general public and in the interest of the petitioner, so that one will not be taking law into his hands.
“And these are the claims number one, an agreement. Between olusco group and PMAN
an MOU was entered into between Olusco group and PMAN for them to take possession of this site that is located beside on the rock in Abuja here.
“And court processes were available, a court order has been gotten to restrain anybody, including the Nigerian police to stop the harassment of the staffs and the owner, on the occupier .
“However, we discovered that there is one officer claiming that she is acting in the order of IGP monitoring team. He was the one that actually led some policemen to come and intimidate, harass innocent citizen, armless citizen, doing their doing their job diligently. This is what we want now. We want the inspector general police to immediately set up a panel to intervene and find out what is the root causes .
While commending the IGP’s past efforts to reform the police force, the coalition emphasized the need for continued accountability. They stressed that their protest was not an attack on the Nigeria Police Force but a call to uphold justice and the rule of law.
The coalition urged the Inspector General to ensure full enforcement of the court order and to end the reported harassment without delay.
Furthermore, the complaints, the CEO of Olusco Group, Femi Olumeyan explained that there is a business transaction with the Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria (PMAN) in May 2023, involving a joint venture (JV) agreement.
He stated that he has invested over 2 billion naira in the property and has the necessary paperwork to proceed with the construction
He urged various authorities, including the Senate, House Committee on Police Affairs, and the Ministry of Police Affairs to intervene.
Femi Olusco emphasized the need for the police to respect court orders and stop interfering in the civil matter.
News
Tin City Warms Up for President Tinubu as North Central Embraces Renewed Hope
By Sunday Dare
When President Bola Ahmed Tinubu berths on the plains and rolling hills that dominate the Jos landscape tomorrow, he will meet a people resourceful, friendly and resilient but weighed down by conflict, yet unbowed by adversity.
So, tommorrow, national attention turns to the Plateau- a locale laden with history and rich with potential. From the tin mines that gave the city of Jos its name, to the Irish potato, strawberry farms and beetroot plantations that dot its landscape, Jos remains a land of promise—truly the Home of Peace and Tourism.
Jos is also deeply woven into Nigeria’s political history. Plateau is home to towering figures such as Generals JD Gomwalk, Yakubu Gowon, John Shagaya, Joshua Dogoyaro, and Jerry Useni. Solomon Lar, Senator Ibrahim Mantu and numerous others also stand tall in the annals Plateau political history.
Jos was also the rallying ground of the famed Langtang Mafia—a group of influential military officers from Langtang in Plateau State who, at the height of their power, played a significant role in Nigeria’s political and military affairs.
The story of Jos is both exciting and excruciating. The city lost its innocence some two and a half decades ago, when the popular Terminus Market was reduced to rubble through acts of arson and looting.
Thus at the turn of the millennium by 2001, Jos—and by extension, Plateau—was thrown into a cycle of unending conflict. Ethnic tensions, clothed in religious garb, tore through the city and spread across the state, dragging Jos into an abyss of violence, almost of Kigali proportions. Peace gave way to war, and tourism jaunts became undertakings to the undertaker.
Yet Jos has never surrendered. Every time it is written off, it rises again—scarred, but resilient. With its multi-ethnic, multi-religious fabric, the Plateau continues to trudge on in pursuit of peace, development, and egalitarian ideals.
It was here, in Jos, that Nigeria’s democratic resurgence was birthed. The historic SDP convention, where late General Shehu Yar’Adua and Chief Moshood Abiola held sway, took place in this city. Jos gave political life to Abiola, our hero of democracy in 1992
Now, thirty three years later, another hero of democracy and of the June 12 struggle returns to the Plateau. President Tinubu’s return and visit to Plateau State is not just to honor the transition to glory of Nana Lydia Yilwatda, the mother of the APC National Chairman.
It is a visit that carries deeper meaning—one of empathy, solidarity, and renewed hope for a people who have endured decades of turmoil. It is a mission to preach peace, console the bereaved, bind wounds, and assure Plateau of its central place in the Nigerian project.
Mr President comes not just to mourn, but to reconnect. He comes to parley with the North Central, to commiserate with a people who have suffered, and to extend the hand of renewed hope. That Renewed Hope is laying a solid foundation as evidenced by Naira at N1,455 per dollar, rising Foreign Reserves at $43bn, Trade surplus heading for N25tr. Revenues up 411% and Inflation down to about 20 per cent. Over 600,000 students benefiting from NELFUND.
This visit is more than ceremonial. It is a journey into the very soul of a people who have known pain, yet remain resilient; a land scarred by conflict, yet still brimming with hope and promise. As the Tin City opens its arms, Jos will not just receive the President—it will receive a message of solidarity, healing, and renewal.
Tomorrow is about remembering the glorious past, confronting the present, and charting a path to a peaceful and prosperous Plateau within a united Nigeria. With President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, Jos once again stands at the intersection of history and destiny.
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