Over 200 qualified applicants seeking to own houses in the Ogun State Government Housing Scheme, named Prince Court Estate along Kobape, have accused the government led by Prince Dapo Abiodun of receiving payment without allocating any houses to them almost three years ago.
The representative of the group, Adeyemi Aremu, in Abeokuta, explained that the housing scheme was sold to them by the Ogun State Ministry of Housing.
He said that the applicants of the third phase of the scheme, seeking to become owners of 2-bedroom bungalows in the estate, have duly paid the prices but have not been given any property.
He also said that the forms for the allocations were purchased in 2022 for ₦5,000 and each house costs ₦5,500,000, with a rebate for retired civil servants who were asked to pay ₦4,950,000.
Adeyemi Aremu further explained that some paid outrightly or in two installments while others made their payment through the Gateway Mortgage Bank, owned by the Ogun State government.
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He showed various receipts to prove his case, saying that the names of over 200 qualified applicants were approved and posted, and since then, no allocation has been made by the state government.
He also said that the need to cry out was necessitated by the fact that the Dapo Abiodun-led government has not fulfilled its part of the bargain despite the people paying for the shelter.
He added that there are various rumors that the government is planning to increase the price of the shelter or give the available 100 uncompleted semi-detached 2-bedroom bungalow carcasses to civil servants who were chased out of Ibara government quarters at the expense of those who have fully paid to the Ministry of Housing.
According to him, “It is sad that the Gateway Mortgage Bank has not protected their clients or tried to get the shelter for them even as many are still paying mortgages with interest to date.”
He also said, “The whole process is so discouraging, especially for those Ogun people who showed interest in investing in the state and purchasing the shelter. Now it is looking like fraud by the state government.”
According to him, “With the arrangement, some people paid outrightly or in two installments while others remit in installments with interest when equity of at least 30 percent contribution is made to the mortgage bank.”
“Immediately we have an agreement with the Gateway Mortgage Bank, the houses are supposed to be allocated to us. The bank would pay outrightly, while we would remit in installments with interest,” he added.
“All over the world, when you access a mortgage loan through a mortgage bank, before you begin the repayment/interest, one would have taken possession of the property at least a year earlier. But Ogun State’s own under Governor Dapo Abiodun is like throwing a stone at an orange on a tree; the stone is missing, and even the orange,” Adeyemi Aremu said.
He then asked, “What then could be the excuse after we have fulfilled our part of the bargain?”
When contacted for his reaction, the Commissioner for Housing, Jamiu Akande Omoniyi, attributed the inability of the Ministry to deliver the houses on record time to the inflation in the country, which resulted in a rise in the cost of building materials.
He added that there were ongoing efforts by the state government to resolve the issue, assuring the applicants that their deposits are intact. He, however, called for calm, stressing that the matter will be addressed accordingly.
Jamiu Omoniyi said that the Governor Dapo Abiodun-led administration is determined to deliver on his promise to provide affordable but qualitative houses to the residents of the state.
He concluded that the Ministry will “continue to be transparent and just in the allocation of the housing units, not only at the Prince Court Estate, but other housing schemes across the state.”
