Tension erupted in Ikeja, Lagos, after the Akinole-Oshiun family accused Hon. James Abiodun Faleke and officials of the Ogun-Osun River Basin Development Authority (OORBDA) of allegedly unleashing hoodlums on a disputed property, despite what the family described as “final and binding” court judgments affirming its ownership rights.
Hon. James Abiodun Faleke is a third-term lawmaker representing Ikeja Federal Constituency in the 10th House of Representatives.
The family alleged that armed thugs stormed the property located along Lateef Jakande Road, opposite the Coca-Cola factory in Agidingbi, in the early hours of Monday, May 25, 2026, demolishing a newly erected perimeter fence and forcefully removing the entrance gate in what witnesses described as a terrifying overnight operation.
The incident has sparked fresh controversy over alleged land grabbing, political influence, and disregard for court judgments in Lagos.
According to the family, the attackers operated under the cover of darkness and allegedly acted on the instructions of Faleke and officials of OORBDA.
Residents in the area were reportedly thrown into panic as the operation unfolded in the dead of night.
“This was not just destruction of property; it was a direct assault on the rule of law,” the family declared in a strongly worded statement issued after the incident.
The disputed land, measuring about 8,097 square metres, forms part of a larger expanse of land in Agidingbi that has been the subject of legal battles spanning several decades.
The family insisted that courts, from the High Court to the Supreme Court, had consistently affirmed its ownership rights over the land.
According to the report, the Lagos State High Court entered judgment in favour of the family in Suit No. ID/216/77L between Sule Akinole & Anor v. A.T.O. Mogaji & Ors, while subsequent appeals challenging the judgment were dismissed by both the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court.
The family further revealed that an attempt by the Lagos State Government to reopen the matter at the Court of Appeal in 2007 was also dismissed for lacking merit.
Following the legal victories, the family said it obtained a writ of possession and successfully recovered the land through a court-supervised execution in 2019.
It added that the Lagos State Government later initiated reconciliation efforts with land-owning families in Agidingbi and eventually allocated portions of land to the Akinole-Oshiun family in 2025, including the disputed parcel opposite the Coca-Cola factory.
According to the family, the allocation came with official survey documents authenticated by the Surveyor-General of Lagos State, after which possession of the land was formally handed over to it.
The family said it subsequently commenced development on the property, including fencing and the installation of a gate, before the structures were allegedly demolished overnight.
However, in a dramatic twist, the family claimed that Faleke insisted the land belongs to OORBDA based on a Certificate of Occupancy allegedly issued to the agency by the Lagos State Government in 1994.
The lawmaker was also alleged to have claimed a 20-year lease over the property.
The family, however, dismissed the claim as “lame, preposterous, and contemptuous,” insisting that no Certificate of Occupancy or lease agreement could override subsisting court judgments and executed possession orders.
The incident has now triggered calls for an investigation and possible prosecution of all persons allegedly connected to the demolition.
Observers say the development could ignite another major controversy over land ownership, political power, and the enforcement of judicial decisions in Lagos.
As of the time of filing this report, neither Faleke nor officials of OORBDA had publicly responded to the allegations.
