Vanguard | 4 May 2025
Ondo farmers protest alleged destruction, forceful takeover of farmland by private firm
By Dayo Johnson, Akure
Aggrieved farmers in Ondo State protested over the alleged forceful takeover and destruction of their farmlands at the Oluwa Forest Reserve in Odigbo council area. The protest took place over the weekend, with placard-carrying farmers shutting down the Lagos/Ore highway. They accused the private firm SAO Agro-Allied Services Limited, in collaboration with the state government, of destroying their plantations.
The farmers allege that SAO Agro-Allied Services, owned by Ayo Sotinrin, Managing Director of the Bank of Agriculture (BOA), is being aided by Rotimi Wemimo Akinsola, the Senior Special Assistant to Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa on Agriculture and Agric-business.
Some of the protest placards read:
“Ayo Sotinrin Is Using Govt Power On Poor Farmers”
“Tinubu Save Farmers From Sotinrin”
“SAO Belongs To Ayo Sotinrin, MD, Bank of Agric”
“Rotimi Wemimo Must Go”
“Farmers Have Rights To Life”
Spokesperson for the farmers, Musafiu Irewolede, alleged that the private firm forcibly evicted the farmers from the forest reserves by destroying their crops. He said the company claimed to have purchased over 10,000 hectares of farmland from the state government.
Irewolede explained, “This development is in violation of a court order that restrains the state government and the private firm from evicting farmers from the forest reserves.”
He continued, “On April 28, 2025, while our leaders, including Mr. Abayomi Isinleye, were lured to Akure for a supposed peace meeting by Mr. Rotimi Wemimo Akinsola, SAO Agro-Allied Services drove bulldozers into our farms and began destroying our cocoa plantations. They claimed they had purchased 10,000 hectares of the State Forest Reserve from the Ondo State Government, the same government that has been collecting rents from us every year.”
The farmers revealed that since 2019, they have been paying ₦20,000 per rope to farm on the land and have challenged the government’s actions in court. They received an injunction halting the destruction of their farms, but it was ignored.
Irewolede added, “The government sold our farmlands to SAO Agro-Allied Services, and we were shocked to see bulldozers destroying our crops last week. Ayo Sotinrin, appointed by President Bola Tinubu, is behind the purchase of the land, with the support of Governor Aiyedatiwa’s aide, Rotimi Wemimo Akinsola.”
The farmers also stated that the government has been taxing them for over 20 years, collecting multiple levies such as rent, security fees, and money for identity cards, yet they continue to face eviction. “We will not accept this injustice,” Irewolede declared.
Another farmer, Felix Adeniyi, lamented that the forceful takeover would worsen the conditions of farmers in the state. He stated, “At least 15,000 farmers will be displaced by this development. The land has been our livelihood for many families.”
Adeniyi called on Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa to remove Mr. Rotimi Wemimo Akinsola, accusing him of prioritizing private interests over the welfare of farmers. He also demanded the resignation of Ayo Sotinrin as the MD of the Bank of Agriculture, citing a conflict of interest. Adeniyi urged President Bola Tinubu to remove Sotinrin if he does not resign.
In response, Ayo Sotinrin, Managing Director of the Bank of Agriculture, denied that SAO Agro-Allied Services was dispossessing farmers of their land. He explained that the company had processed the land allocation, paid all necessary fees, and obtained a Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) for the land.
Sotinrin stated, “We are engaging in large-scale commercial agriculture, and we need to ensure that our land records are accurate. The land we are using has a Certificate of Occupancy issued by the government. We have also offered compensation to the farmers and proposed giving them 3,000 hectares of land to cultivate.”
However, Sotinrin acknowledged encountering farmers who were farming on the land illegally when it was accessed.
Efforts to obtain comments from Rotimi Wemimo Akinsola, the Senior Special Assistant to Governor Aiyedatiwa, were unsuccessful.
Sahara Reporters | 4 May 2025
The farmers, wielding placards and banners, blocked a major highway and chanted slogans demanding justice and protection from what they described as state-backed land grabs.
Hundreds of farmers in the Oluwa Forest Reserve (OA3A) in Odigbo Local Government Area of Ondo State have staged a major protest, accusing the Ondo State Government, and officials of SAO Agro-Allied Services Limited of attempting to forcefully evict them from farmlands they have cultivated for years, despite a subsisting court order halting such actions.
The farmers, wielding placards and banners, blocked a major highway and chanted slogans demanding justice and protection from what they described as state-backed land grabs.
The protest follows a March 24, 2025 interlocutory injunction by the Ondo State High Court, which restrained both the state government and SAO Agro-Allied Services Ltd from carrying out further grading or eviction activities pending the final determination of the case filed by the farmers.
Some of the protesters bore signs that read, “Respect Court Orders; Stop the Oppression of Farmers at Oluwa Forest Reserve,” “All Oppressed Farmers, Unite!” and “Ayo Sotinrin, MD Bank of Agric, Is Using His Office to Persecute Poor Farmers; Rotimi Wemimo Must Go!”
Farmers Accuse Top Officials of Betrayal
The protesters directly accused Dr. Ayo Sotinrin—recently appointed Managing Director of the Bank of Agriculture and owner of SAO Agro-Allied Services Ltd—and Mr. Rotimi Wemimo Akinsola, Chairman of the Ondo State Agribusiness Empowerment Centre (OSAEC), of orchestrating the attempts to evict them. They also criticised Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa for breaking promises made during previous meetings.
Video file
Musafiu Irewolede, one of the farmers, said: “Since 2019, we’ve been paying N20,000 per rope to farm here. Just about a month ago, bulldozers arrived again, despite a court injunction that stopped such actions. We paid for structures, security IDs, and the use of the land. They told us to our faces that they don’t give a damn about the court order.”
A "rope" (called “ròòpù” in Yoruba) is an informal unit of land area used in rural and agrarian settings. It originates from the practice of measuring land using actual ropes of standardised lengths.
This local system is still widely used in forest reserves, agrarian settlements, and community land allocations across parts of Ondo, Ogun, Oyo, and Ekiti states.
Felix Adeniyi, another farmer, lamented the impact of the dispute on their health and livelihood:
“We paid all our dues – ID cards, receipts, everything the governor asked for. Aiyedatiwa promised us no more bulldozers before the last governorship election, and we supported him. Now, not only are bulldozers back, they’ve come three times this week. Some people have had strokes because of this stress. This is the only means of survival for over 15,000 of us. We can’t steal, we can’t kidnap – all we want is to farm in peace.”
Women Farmers Say Government Took Their Money, Then Betrayed Them
Female farmers also voiced their frustration, saying they were coerced into making payments for farmhouses and processing depots but are now being evicted without explanation.
Mrs. Omoniyi Nurat said: “They brought soldiers to scare us. They came with the army to take our cocoa farms. We have ID cards. We don’t want bulldozers on our farms again.”
“We paid for everything – farmhouses, palm oil depots. N25,000 for each house, N50,000 for each depot. We voted for Aiyedatiwa, and now he wants to destroy us. Why? Many have died, others are battling strokes. Let the governor tell us what we did wrong,” Mrs. Agnes Omamumijoye added:
Longtime Farmers Say They've Been Betrayed Despite Compliance
Kenneth Osai, who said he had been farming at OA3A since 2011, echoed the concerns: “We’ve always obeyed government directives. Recently, we learned the land was sold to Ayo Sotinrin’s company. Since then, he’s been disturbing us and clearing our farms. Despite the court injunction, graders keep coming. We paid over N30 million this year alone. We beg the government: don’t clear our farms. Whatever they want us to do, we’ll do it. Just let us farm.”
Investors, Legal Dispute and Ethnic Diversity of Farmers
SAO Agro-Allied Services Ltd, led by Dr. Ayo Sotinrin, claims to be the lead investor in the Ondo Special Agro Processing Zone, a project backed by the African Development Fund and the Ondo State Government. The company says it was allocated 10,000 hectares of degraded forest land by the state.
But the farmers insist the land was never degraded and that they have been the rightful occupants, cultivating and paying fees for years.
The farmers, drawn from diverse ethnic backgrounds—Yoruba, Hausa, Igbo, Tiv and others—said their unity and peaceful protest should not be mistaken for weakness.
Their legal team has warned that the ongoing harassment undermines the rule of law and, if left unaddressed, could destabilise the region.
Call to Tinubu, Aiyedatiwa
The protesters called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa to intervene before more lives and livelihoods are destroyed.
“We just want to be left alone to farm,” said Adeniyi. “This land is our only hope. We have nowhere else to go.”
In a recent interview with SaharaReporters, Sotinrin denied that SAO Agro-Allied Services Limited was dispossessing farmers in Ondo State of their farmland.
“We want to put the records straight. We are doing large-scale commercial agriculture, and we need to have our records very straight. Whatever land we want to use, we need to have a Certificate of Occupancy issued by the government authorities on the land," Sotinrin said.
Sotinrin explained that the company processed the land allocation, paid all necessary fees, and obtained a Certificate of Occupancy (C of O).
He, however, added that upon accessing the land, the company encountered farmers whom he claimed were on the land illegally. Despite the farmers' claims of having been on the land for 20 years, Sotinrin emphasised that the company's documentation and C of O superseded any claims of ownership by the farmers.
Sotinrin stated that the company had tried to engage with the farmers, offering compensation and even proposing to give them 3000 hectares of land to cultivate. He claimed that the farmers had instead used the compensation to fund court cases and media attacks against the company.
He questioned the injunction granted by the Ondo State High Court, which restrained the state government and SAO Agro-Allied Services Ltd from further grading or eviction activities pending the final determination of the case filed by the farmers.
He emphasised that the company had invested billions of naira in the project, creating jobs and infrastructure.