Low Income Houses: How Politicians, State Government Officials hijack apartments — Investigation
The Low-Income Estate built by the Bayelsa State Government has been allegedly hijacked by the politicians and senior government officials in the state, investigations have revealed.
An Estate built by former governor Seriake Dickson called “Anyama Low Income Estate Phase 1” was hurriedly commissioned by Dickson before he left office on the 12th of February 2020 without internal roads, toilet facilities, electricity, security amongst others.
The estate which comprises 42 units by 84 flats has since been abandoned by the Gov Dóuye Diri-led administration since he took over office as the governor of the state from Dickson on 2020.
These facts were discovered during an investigative tour carried out by members of the Federated Correspondents’ Chapel of the NUJ on Thursday as part of its social obligations.
The Correspondents visited the estate along Yenagoa/Oporoma road Anyama in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of the state and Okaka Phase 2 estate in the heart of Yenagoa the state capital.
Findings indicate that the estate have been occupied by homeless people who found solace in the uncompleted projects.
However, some of the occupants claim to have rented the place from the government officials who allegedly manipulated the process to their selfish ends.
It was further learnt that government officials are capitalising on the fact that the homeless who thronged the estates are occupying the area without official allocation claim to be ‘Landlords’ collecting rent from some of the occupants.
Speaking to members of the Federated Correspondents’ Chapel an occupant in the estate, Chief
Daniel Oputu, a resident of Ayama Housing Estate said that his apartment belongs to one Clement Angalabiri which he rented from him.
“I am not one of those illegal occupants, I am the Chairman of this Estate but let’s say about 50 per cent of the occupants are illegal tenants because one man who calls himself the Community Liaison Officer illegally rented these houses to them.
“And some people said that he is from the Ministry of Housing. His name is John Amakiri” Oputu said.
According to Oputu, over 95% of occupants in the estate do not have toilets.
“As I am here, I am trying to arrange a toilet for myself at the back of the flat. When I came here, I paid directly to the landlord and I discovered that there is no toilet, no staircase. When I complained to him, he said I should do it and I did everything including the wiring of the place but when the first payment of N100,000 expired, he said I should pay again which I refused, and he gave me quit notice that made me relocate to this particular one.
“We made an inquiry, and we were told that these houses are allocated to them by the government through the Ministry of Housing. For some of the apartments, two landlords are even laying claim to it. Some tenants don’t even know who is their landlord”, Oputu said.
He said, they are facing so many problems in the estate like the issue of toilet facilities, lights, road network, water amongst others.
“If you want to take a house here and you go to one John Amakiri at the Ministry of Housing, he will tell you to pay to him and he will come and allocate the place without you seeing your landlord for the next three years.
“This place is about 200 acres of land, and these are the houses that they have built. These houses are not even completed. Legally you cannot even rent a house when the house is not completed but we are managing it.
“I have been here for three years, and I am paying N200,000. Last year the government came and said that they wanted to do something, they came with caterpillars and other equipment, and in the end, nothing was done.
We have about 42 blocks by 84 flats and almost all of them are occupied.
“I want the government to come and assist us by putting the toilet facilities and connect light to the estate. We don’t have water except for two or three boreholes that are privately owned. Every day we spend nothing less than N500 on fetching water with labour. We lack security. Everybody is a security officer here in the night,” he said.
Also, Mr Gentleman Siloko said, he is occupying the flat based on rent from his landlord.
“Before the commissioning there was no staircase, no toilet electrification which were supposed to be done but none. So if you pay you look for a source of light. Every landlord collects based on negotiation. But most of us are paying two-bedroom flats for between N100,000 and N250,000,” Siloko said.
In her contribution, Madam Preye Ebi said, that houses in the estate are allocated to the big men in the state. Even the places that they have inly dug foundation have been allocated to the big men” she said.
At Okaka Housing Estate, Madam Joy Onbu said, that she came to the estate through one Philip who claimed that the brother known as Akpos was the contractor of the place.
According to her, “ I came here through Philip, and he didn’t collect any money from me. When I first came, I gave the person staying in my present apartment N70,000 and since that time I have not paid anything. I also gave Philip N20,000.
“I have been here for four years now, and I am not paying anything because he is not disturbing anybody but now, he said that everybody will pay N100,000 because people are subletting the house to other people. We have steady NEPA light, and we did the toilets by ourselves”.
Contacted on telephone in pretext of renting a place at the Anyama Low Income Estate, Mr. John Amakiri agreed on giving out a flat at the cost of N120,000 per annum.
Amakiri said the houses have been allocated to former Commissioners, members of the House of Assembly and other top government officials.
He claimed to be acting on behalf of the Ministry of Housing in the state.
