Hundreds of residents and property owners along the Ibadan Circular Road corridor today staged a peaceful protest at the Oyo State Government Secretariat, Agodi, Ibadan. The demonstrators, carrying placards and chanting solidarity songs, accused the state government of expanding the road setback beyond the originally approved 150-metre limit, a move they claim threatens to displace thousands of people.
Protesters alleged that the ongoing demolition and marking of properties were being done without adequate notice or compensation, describing the action as unfair and insensitive. Many lamented that their lifetime investments and ancestral homes now risk destruction in the name of development.
Security operatives were stationed at the Secretariat gate to prevent breakdown of order as the demonstrators demanded immediate intervention from Governor Seyi Makinde. Some leaders among the protesters urged the government to respect the gazetted layout and halt all demolition pending further dialogue.
Government representatives who addressed the crowd appealed for calm and assured that their concerns would be relayed to the governor. They maintained that the state had not approved any new expansion beyond the gazetted 150-metre corridor.
The protest, which caused traffic gridlock around the Circular Road axis and Secretariat junction, ended peacefully with a renewed call from residents for fairness, transparency, and compensation before any further demolition exercise.