Demolition of Illegal Structures In Delta: Gov’t Won’t Encourage Illegality – Latimore

…Advises buyers to conduct due diligence before payment

The Chief Executive Officer of Delta State Orientation and Communications Bureau, Dr Latimore Oghenesivbe, has said that neither the State Government nor the governor, Rt Hon Sheriff Oborevwori, is to be blamed for the ongoing demolition of property in some parts of the state.

He advised intending property buyers to first engage the services of a lawyer to conduct due diligence search on the property before making payment, noting that those affected by ongoing demolition exercise in the state were people who bought government land from either land grabbers or unauthorized sellers.

Oghenesivbe, a lawyer, gave the advise on Thursday, while speaking at Bridge FM Radio public affairs program “The Parliament,” saying that in real estate transactions intending property buyers ought not to be ignorant of the history and nature of the property which they are buying from another party.

“Caveat emptor simply means buyers beware, which automatically placed the burden of due diligence on the buyer of a property, not the seller.

“It is very important for an intending property buyer to first engage the services of a legal Practitioner to conduct due diligence on the property, and if the report is positive then the buyer may proceed to perfect all legal documents before making payment.

“Failure to conduct search on a property through a lawyer before payment may result in buyer buying a lawsuit instead of a property.

“Delta State government will not encourage illegality, which is why all illegal structures on government property must go down. It’s painful but unavoidable. Deltans will benefit more from the exercise under the MORE Agenda of the governor.

“It’s far cheaper to pay a lawyer to conduct search on the property before making payment, than for the buyer to lose millions of Naira, as can be seen from the ongoing demolition of some gigantic structures erected on government property.

“It follows that neither the state government nor the governor, Rt Hon Sheriff Oborevwori, is to be blamed over the ongoing demolition of property erected on government land.

“Meaningful development is one of the core objectives of governor Oborevwori as encapsulated in his MORE Agenda. After the demolition exercise, government shall fully develop the land for the benefit of all Deltans,” Oghenesivbe assured.