The Kano state commissioner for information, Halilu Baba Dantiye has said that the ongoing demolition exercise embarked upon by the state government was aimed to recover and return lands to owner institutions and not be allocated to individuals.
This was just as the commissioner, who was a former president of the Nigeria Guild of Editors (NGE) advised journalists to shun partisan activities and be more professional in order to protect the image of the profession.
Dantiye disclosed this during the swearing-in ceremony of newly elected officials of the correspondents chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Kano Council on Tuesday.
According to him,” no piece of confiscated land will be allocated to any individual or group but will be returned to the owner institutions in the state.”
Dantiye added that ” The government has taken certain actions, some controversial. I was in the media on the issue of demolition. I think I was able to address it well.
He, however, disclosed that obviously there is no contradiction that these places belong to institutions, universities, mosques and so on. All the places that were demolished are going to be restored to their original owners.
“Lands owned by the polytechnic will be restored to the polytechnic to build laboratories, hostels, lecture rooms and others.
“Lands belonging to the mosques will be returned to the mosques. Nobody is going to be allocated any of such lands.
“Whosever feels dissatisfied with that can go to the Commission of Enquiry which will be established. Those with reasonable claims will be compensated by the government.”
He congratulated those who emerged winners to fill in the available positions in the bye-election.