Speaking on behalf of the residents, Mr. Tayo Soetan, chairman of the residents and landlord association reeled out a long list of issues agitating the minds of residents.
“We all bought flats here when UPGC/Union Homes offered to sell flats to the general public. We did this with the expectation that we were moving into an estate that would be well managed. I bought in the secondary market but a lot of people bought in the primary market. I wasn’t that fortunate,” he said.
Soetan asserted that all was going on well while the core investors remained in charge until 2011, noting that trouble started when the core investors exited the estate in early 2011.
“They now handed it over to a company called HISPANIA. At that point, HISPANIA was purported to be a foreign company. But upon search at CAC, we found that it belonged to two individuals – Mr. Samuel Ukpong and one Mr. Akin. Over a couple of months, we found that HISPANIA was just a name. we found out that we had just been deceived to believe that a foreign company was taking over 1004 flats. However, it turned out to be a core set of individuals who were either ex UPGC/UAC staff or present UPGC/UAC staff”.
Soetan explained that since the ownership changed till date, things appeared to have fallen apart in the estate. “Since Ukpong took over, nobody has known peace in this estate. When we moved in, power was being sold at N50 per kilowatt-hour, and the excuse that UPGC gave us was that it was because the estate was not fully occupied. They promised that by the time we had full occupancy, the power rate would drop. When it peaked at 95 per cent, rather than bring down the rate, Ukpong increased it by 50 per cent and we started paying 75 naira.”
He continued: “The association had been on before he took over, but he has done everything to bypass, sideline and demonise the association. But we have been resolute and we have said that all we want is accountability in the management of our estate; transparency in the management of the estate and fairness in the treatment of owners of flats who have paid good money to acquire assets here. As I stand here, he has not given one account for all the monies that have been collected in four years. We decided to employ KPMG to audit the account of the service charge we pay and of the power. He agreed. But as time went on, he refused and KPMG had to pull out while the money we paid to KPMG had to be forfeited. We have therefore, served him a notice of termination.”
But then you asked the chairman: why did it take the tenants so long to react? His response: “Our approach in the beginning was that of engagement. I, particularly, was one of those who said, let’s give him a chance. We set up a committee, we met with him over time but it got to a point when we found out that he was doing nothing. So we went to court. He has even taken us to court. But it is common practice, acceptable standard expects that if I pay you, you must account for what you are paying my money on. We have gone to the Nigerian Institute of Estate Surveyors.”
Soetan noted that Ukpong had done everything to sideline, bypass and demonise the association, but said the residents have been resolute.
“We told him that all we want is accountability in the management of our estate, transparency in the management of our estate and fairness and respect in the treatment of resident and owners of the estate who have paid good money to acquire houses here. Over the years, we have paid billions of money. We want the money that we have paid in the last four years accounted for.
Efforts to get Ukpong proved abortive, as he didn’t return his calls nor responded to his messages.
Culled from The Sun
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