SARAKI’S PROPERTY: We demolished sheds, not old peoples home -Kwara govt

The Kwara State Government on Monday denied demolishing an old Peoples home but sheds that have become security risk in the state.

According to a statement on Monday by the Commissioner for Communications, Murtala Olarenwaju, the demolished sheds were occasionally used for political gatherings.

The state government was reacting to widespread condemnation that trailed the demolition of the property belonging to the late godfather of Kwara politics, Dr. Olusola Saraki, popularly called ‘Ile Arugbo’ (old Peoples Home).

According to Olanrewaju, the narrative about government demolishing old people’s home was a fabrication by the opposition to cover up for their lack of any document to confirm ownership of the property.

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Olanrewaju, in the statement, however said that the current administration was the most gender-friendly government in Africa with at least 56 per cent of his cabinet being women adding that the government was also embarking on many initiatives, including the social investment programme and health insurance scheme targeted at taking care of old people, especially women.

“The property is one of the over 100 government assets in GRA, Ilorin, Kwara State, Victoria Island, Lagos, Kaduna, and Abuja investigated by the Asset Recovery Committee led by Senator Suleiman Ajadi, which were unlawfully converted to private use. Until its physical reclamation, the property comprised only of sheds.

“The property was never an old people’s home, neither was it residential; nobody lived there. The property has always been a security risk. No fewer than 97 people, mostly women, have died in mysterious stampedes in that facility as they scampered for handouts.”

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