We’re Blessed With Large Deposits of Oil, Gold But We Fetch Potable Water From Benin Republic.

 

Daud Olatunji

30 April 2021

The recent encroachment on Nigerian territory by Benin Republic has raised dust. An indigene of Igbokofi, a border town in Ogun State, Dr Kunle Garb, traces the history of the border community and how the Nigerian government’s carelessness has contributed to the recent problem in this interview with DAUD OLATUNJI

I am a field missionary. I live in Igbokofi land, Yewa-North Local Government Area of Ogun State. I am a Nigerian and by God’s grace, the Lord has really helped to make a little impact in that community. A few years ago, I got a hint about the boundary issue and it has actually affected the people a lot; and since then, I have been able to do some research and I got to know that what the  people actually told me was true.

Now, let me start by telling you the little history behind the people in that place. Igbokofi has been in existence for the past 150 years and the original settlers were from Oyo town in the present Oyo State of Nigeria and they were predominantly farmers. When they got to Igbokofi that was when they started farming; when  they got to  Igbokofi, they  settled there and ever since then, they have  been living  there and  mind you, Igbokofi is a community of about 10  villages, including Bode, Ashaga, Oke-eyo, Omilende, Ipinle, Owode, Ijigbo and a few others.

Igbokofi politically has nine polling booths in the Ijoun ward of the Yewa-North Local Government Area for you to know that this place we are talking about is in Nigeria and by God’s grace, Igbokofi has produced two councillors for the Yewa-North Local Government Council; one is alive and the other is dead. The inhabitants plant maize and of recent, they started planting cocoa, because the land is very fertile and the terrain is very muddy and swapping, which is very good for cocoa.

 Let’s talk about the boundary issue; what actually happened?

Originally, the Nigeria and Benin Republic border was the Opara River, which is now in Benin Republic; and as you know, borders are being demarcated either by gullies, hills, rivers and streams; you don’t just site a borders, whether it is international or local, just anyhow. The Opara River was originally the border between Nigeria and Benin Republic that was before the colonial era; after that, it was moved though not formally and there were no documents to show it actually, and the people even, in Benin Republic, knew it.

Pillars were not erected, but the people could bear witness that it was the river; it was moved verbally not documented; and it was moved to a place called Onigbolo and from Onigbolo, they moved it down to Kotan. Actually, Onigbolo is having a highway from Cotonou down to Ketu, that highway was the border; any place before the border was Nigeria and any place after the highway was Benin Republic.

It was moved from Onigbolo to a place called Otekotan that is shortened to Kotan; it was when the border was moved to Kotan that made the Kotan people go to school in Nigeria. I have about three Nigerian Baptist Convention reverends, who came from Kotan; one is still alive. And that has given them an opportunity to come to school in Nigeria and become either reverends or teachers in Nigeria; so, we have so many Otekotan children and indigenes in Ifo, Abeokuta, Lagos and mostly in Ibadan.

After Otekotan, it was moved to the Towe River; from Nigeria, Towe is before Otekotan, and from Benin, it is after Kotan. After the Towe River, it was moved to the stream behind the Igbokofi Market; that is very important to me, because it was Igbokofi people who established the market. Igbokofi people are farmers and hunters and they farm and hunt as far as Towe. So, Igbokofi people own Toweland and not Benin Republic. Before Toweland, we have Ibate. Ibate and Towe share the same boundary and they still control the land up till date. There is nothing that they want to do in Towe that they will not first consult the people of Igbokofi. Actually, Towe has a king, but Igbokofi does not have a king, but a Baale.

Ibate also had a king, who died recently and came from a place under Igbokofi. The Igbokofi people started the market because Ijoun, which happens to be the nearest place, is far away. Ijoun to Igbokofi is about 15km; so, they started the market to sell farm produce; people come from as far as Ifo, Abeokuta and Ayetoro, even all the way from Igangan in Benin Republic for market activities.

Like I said, that river is very important to me because the major international pillar called pillar 78 is there; this pillar is the most controversial pillar to this encroachment. The pillar 78 was erected inside the stream and up till today, the Igbokofi Market is being announced on Ogun Radio and Paramount FM every five days and to put on the record, the Igbokofi Market day falls on the Ayetoro and Kuto Market days; so, they announce the Igbokofi Market day alongside the Ayetoro Market and Kuto Market days.

Pillar 78 was erected in the river; it is not the major pillar, but the smaller pillar where the biggest pillar is supposed to be erected beside was erected inside the stream; now, when the bigger pillar was erected, they started erecting pillars right from Cotonou and pillar 74 was erected behind Ipinle and note that Ipinle is under Igbokofi . Pillars 75, 76, 77 and 78 were not erected, I am talking about bigger pillars, and why did that happen? Pillars 75, 76 and 77 were missing where they erected them; this happened because the Benin Republic government removed those pillars so as to claim Igbokofi.

As an example of what happened, we had three people that used to collect taxes for the Nigerian government in Benin Republic, when Towe and Ibate and Lafenwa were still under the then Egbado North Local Government in Nigeria.

 Can you mention those that used to collect taxes for the Nigerian government in Benin Republic?

The first man was Chief Olaleye of blessed memory; he happened to be a high chief in Ayetoro, and presently, there is Chief Adebayo, who is living in Igbokofi and used to collect taxes for the Nigerian government and the Egbado-North Local Government Council. I learnt that they went to collect tax in   Lafenwa and Kotan one morning and as they were coming, they told them that the border had been  set and that they should not come back to collect rates and taxes for the Nigeria government there again; that was when the pillar was erected inside the stream behind the Igbokofi Market.

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What then happened?

After that, the people couldn’t fight because the Nigerian government was so blind as to read the history behind the issue; they agreed with Benin Republic to erect pillar 79 inside the stream; mind you, it is a small pillar. So, when this encroachment was about to start, the Beninese removed the smaller pillars 75, 76 and 77and they replaced them with pillar 78. Now, in 2015, the then deputy to Governor Ibikunle Amosun’s office was in charge of every border. So, he came to a place called Iwoye because of this border issue and the Ogun State Government blindly agreed with Benin Republic to set the border at Iwoye; that is not where they are supposed to put it.

Instead of the then deputy governor to come to Igbokofi, she refused and the Beninese  came overnight because of that and removed pillar78 and put it where it is now, about two kilometres from the Igbokofi Market. Pillars 75 and 77 are missing; they quickly built their border police post right at that place before the border.

 How can you describe the government presence in your area?

There is no water and no good roads. When we want to drink water, we go to Benin Republic to drink water, because the water from the borehole sunk by the Federal Government is not useful, it has side effects. The place has limestone, so we cannot drink the water there and we cannot use it to wash clothes.

On education, the state government has refused to come and take over the structures built by the Federal Government. The primary school there has 370 pupils to three government teachers; so, we are left at the mercy of PTA teachers. And because of the bad roads in the area, teachers don’t want to come to school, because they cannot live in the area. The community has no water, no light and no amenities, nothing that can make one to want to stay there.

On health, there is no government hospital; there is a local government hospital in the area, but it is not functioning. My people have been living at the mercy of quacks and unqualified nurses, and there is a high rate of mortality. The nearest hospital is in Ijoun and from here to Ijoun is about 15 kilometres; so, before a pregnant woman can get there, she would have died; I can show you the burial ground of many women.

 What should the government do now?

My people should be compensated; this humiliation was too much. They should be compensated morally by the government constructing the road. The police post should be put into use by the police. All security agencies must have their posts right at the border instead of them having their posts in Ijale-Ketu, which is about 10 kilometres away. Mind you, I cannot blame them all, because the road is bad.

The government must come and solve the border controversy. There is a need to recognise that this is where the border stops and this is where it starts from Nigeria. The border is still at the market; can you imagine that Benin Republic encroached on the Nigerian border for some kilometres.

 Are the people faced with any harassment by the Benin Republic?

In the 2015 , a man called Mathew Ajose    lost his sight He was a timber merchant.  While  coming from the Nigerian forest with his timber,  he was waylaid and stopped by gendarmes. They threw  tear canister at him and rendered him useless. It happened on Nigerian soil. Igbokofi is very strategic to the Benin Republic because there are mineral resources such as gold and crude oil there.    ,,

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Tags:   CRUDE OIL   OIL SPILL   POTABLE WATER

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