How to avoid trouble with ‘omo onile’ when buying land in Lagos

Many individuals who have purchased or are considering purchasing land in Lagos express concerns about encountering omo-onile, which often hinders their decision. The negative experiences with these individuals have led some people to swear off buying land in Lagos altogether. It is highly probable that regardless of the location you choose, you will come across them.

WHO THEN ARE THE OMO-ONILES?

Omo-oniles are people who claim ownership of land. A land can belong to a family, someone sells it and gives you its papers. Then, other members of the family get wind of it and instead of fighting the seller, they decide to harass you. And if care is not taken, you may end up paying for it multiple times because they just keep showing up.

Omo-onile are not calm people you can take with leniency. They can be a big bone in your throat. You have to stand firm and serious if you don’t want your land property taken away from you. Buying land is not that simple -it involves a lot. This omo-onile may sell to multiple people, thereby causing serious trouble. And if you are not the type that likes trouble you may end up leaving that land out of frustration.

Alhaji Dauda, for the past six years is still having issues with them. Alhaji is a very tough man and the more they give him troubles, the more he is bent on not leaving the land. It even got to the point of going diabolical, yet, he didn’t budge.

One thing about other omo-onile groups is that prevention is better than cure. Avoid them as much as you can and how you do this, I will highlight them in this article.

1. You need a property lawyer

When dealing with certain legal matters, it is important to recognize that not all lawyers possess the expertise required to effectively handle them. This is particularly true when it comes to property law. Engaging the services of a lawyer who specializes in this specific field is crucial. Such a specialized lawyer possesses the necessary knowledge, skills, and experience to navigate property-related legal issues with professionalism and proficiency. By entrusting your case to a property law specialist, you can have confidence that it will be handled diligently and effectively, ensuring the best possible outcome for your situation.

2. Go to the site with the land surveyor and your lawyer

A land surveyor should:

-Read the coordinate of the plot with his GPS (Global Positioning System) and other instruments

-Compare the coordinate readings with the ones in the land survey if there is a copy already.

If it corresponds, then your lawyer/agent should go to Alausa with a copy to find out if the land is under Government acquisition or not. The response from Alausa will determine if you should move to the next stage or not.

READ ALSO:Five reasons housing deficit persists in Lagos despite ongoing construction boom

3. Your lawyer sees to a proper paperwork

These papers are important to be properly done:

-The land surveys

-Deeds of Assignment

-Land receipt

-Certificate of Occupancy

-Government consent should be prepared.

When an omo-onile sees a Lawyer who knows her onion, they are hesitant to mess up, so they comply level-headed. Your Lawyer will organize a meeting between you and representatives of omo-onile and all families involved in the said land transaction and make sure they append their signatures for proper documentation. You can go ahead with developing your land because after all these are achieved, it means that your property is safe.

4. Your lawyer comes in again by negotiating a settlement with the omo-onile of that neighborhood.

Each stage of development might involve the interference of omo-onile. That is why your Lawyer should meet them for negotiation before you start development at all just to avoid waste of materials because they could beat and harass your workers on site and that’s entirely a major issue. If the news spreads, site workers may be unwilling to work on your site even if it’s all settled. Now, another issue is that if anyone is killed or maimed in the process of chaos, this issue might drain you for years because definitely, it will end up in court.

Meanwhile, you should also put into consideration the “Community Development Association.” You don’t want to keep having issues with these people because having so much trouble with them may end up extending your project to the stage of getting tempted to abandon it. so, it’s advisable that your lawyer meets them ahead and discusses and negotiates a settlement.

Once this is done and the original receipt is given, you don’t have any problem going forward. Then your project will certainly move on smoothly without any interference/ disruption and will be completed within the stipulated time frame.

By Dennis Isong

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