By Stephen Gbadamosi, Ibadan
Oyo State government has sealed off a collapsed building under construction located in Dugbe area of Ibadan,the state capital.
The building is owned and set to be occupied by a popular restaurant chain.
Commissioner for Lands, Housing and Urban Development, Mr. Williams Akin-Funmilayo, who spoke with newsmen after an on-the-spot assessment of the collapsed building, said the action was to ensure safety of lives and properties.
He added that sealing off of the collapsed building would allow the government to assess the situation and come up with an adequate report on the cause of the incident.
The Commissioner noted that some of the building materials used for the construction of the collapsed building appeared to be sub-standard and of low quality.
He declared that an integrity test would be carried out on the collapsed building and on other branches of the restaurant in the state to avoid a recurrence.
Akin-Funmilayo stated that the outcome of the test would determine the next action of the government.
He said: “Earlier this morning, the message got to me that there was a building collapse at Dugbe and we came over here to see things for ourselves.
“We thank God that there is no loss of life.
“After seeing the extent of the collapse, we decided that it has to be sealed off because we have to prevent loss of life.
“Professionals from the Ministry of Works would have to come and carry out an integrity test after which the report would advise us on the next action to be taken on the property.
“If they can continue, we will let them know and if it has to be totally brought down, we will let them know as well.
“From what we have seen, substandard materials were used and this has also been corroborated by our professionals from the Ministry of Works. The Director of Public Building has equally looked at it and confirmed it.
“However, we will still go for an integrity test so that absolute professionalism can be ensured and the result thereafter will determine the next action we will take.
“There is an approval for the design. The building has been in existence before but there is a renovation coming up. From the information made available to me, there is a company trying to have an outlet here and they are the people trying to do the renovation. But we never expected what actually happened.
“In addition, this outlet belongs to a popular eatery outfit. I believe the same engineer doing this place handled the other outlets they have in Ibadan and other cities. But, for this to have happened, it means that we have to carry out an integrity test on all their buildings.
“If we find out that the other outlets fail the integrity test, we will bring them down, because we cannot afford to toy with the lives of our people.”
In another development, a suspected cultist, who has been allegedly terrorising Iree community in recent time has been apprehended and charged by the Anti-Cultism Squad of the Nigerian Police Force, Osun State Command.
Authorities of the state polytechnic, Iree, had been on the trail of recalcitrant cultists for years, but breakthrough came for the reputable institution when the police gave proof that a certain Adedokun Saheed, a.k.a. Tiro, had been apprehended by the Anti-Cultism Squad which stormed Iree town to comb the community in search of members of the nefarious group.
The suspect was, on Monday, June 2, arraigned at the Chief Magistrate’s Court, Ikirun, over the menace of cultism; the police said his co-conspirators were still on the run.
In a charge sheet obtained by the police at the Ikirun Chief Magistrate’s Court, with charge number, IK 63, C/2025, a copy of which was made available to People &Politics, it was stated that the State Commissioner of Police was in the case against Saheed and others who were “at large on 13th May, 2025 at about 2:00 a.m. at Iree Magisterial District.”
The police said he (Saheed) conspired with others to commit felony “and, thereby, committed an offence punishable under Section 516 of the Criminal Code Cap 34, Vol II, Laws of Osun State of Nigeria, 2002.”
The charge sheet added that “Adedokun Saheed, a.k.a. Tiro, and others at large, on the same day, time, place and the same Magisterial District, engaged yourself in unlawful society known as ‘Eiye Confraternity’ and unleashed terror on Iree town and its environs and, thereby, committed an offence punishable under Section 64 of the Criminal Code, Law of Osun State of Nigeria, 2002.”
The charge sheet was signed by the Officer in-Charge, Osun State Anti-Cultism Command, Mr. Afolabi Lukman.
In her ruling, Chief Magistrate Mrs A. O. Oyeniyi, ordered that the suspect be remanded in the Ilesa Correctional Centre, Ayeso Area, Ilesa, pending the next adjourned date.
Meanwhile, the management of Osun State Polytechnic, Iree, has commended the Anti-Cultism Squad and the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) for their efforts at wiping out cultists’ activities in Iree community.
Rector of the Polytechnic Iree, Mr. Kehinde Adeyemi Alabi, in his reaction to prosecution of the suspect, Saheed, said the institution had zero tolerance for cultist societies, describing them as unlawful and heinous.
He urged parents and guardians to warn their wards against involvement in such associations.
