Alli campaign warns Makinde over alleged plan to sell Cheshire Home land

The campaign organisation of Senator Sharafadeen Alli, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for the 2027 Oyo State governorship election, has asked Governor Seyi Makinde to stop selling or allocating government land to private developers.

In a statement on Tuesday, the group said it was worried about what it called the arbitrary disposal of public property by the state government. It singled out land belonging to Cheshire Home in Eleyele, Ibadan, which it fears could be handed to private developers.

The statement was signed by Bisi Oladele, described in the releases as director of the Alli campaign organisation and as director of media and publicity for the Senator Sharafadeen Alli Campaign Organisation (SSACO).

The group said the reported plan for the Cheshire Home land fits what it called a pattern of moving valuable public land into private commercial hands.

What the campaign is asking for

According to the statement, Governor Makinde is only a caretaker of the people's property, not its owner.

"Public assets are not personal possessions to be disposed of at the pleasure of any administration," the statement said.

The campaign demanded an immediate halt to any planned sale or allocation of the Cheshire Home land. It also asked that every transaction involving public assets meet what it called the highest standards of transparency and accountability.

It argued that public land in strategic parts of Ibadan should be kept for future needs such as schools, hospitals, recreational facilities and social welfare institutions. Disposing of such land now, it said, would leave little for a state with a fast-growing population.

"Oyo State belongs to its people, and its collective inheritance must be protected," the statement added.

What happens next

The campaign's demand is a call on the state government, not a court order. The sources did not say whether any sale or allocation of the Cheshire Home land has been completed, or whether the state has responded to the allegation.

The claim that the land is being sold is an allegation by the opposition campaign. Governor Makinde's government has not been quoted on the matter in these reports, and no court has ruled on it.

For residents, the argument touches on something practical: land set aside for public use in Ibadan. If such land is sold, the space left for public services in a growing city shrinks. If it is kept, the state must show how it plans to use or maintain it.

With the 2027 governorship race already shaping up, public assets are likely to stay a campaign issue in Oyo State.