Residents, homeowners of 1004 Estate serve notice of termination on co-owner

The residents and home owners of 1004 Estate in Victoria Island, Lagos, have served a notice of termination of contract on Samuel Ukpong, a co-owner in the estate over mismanagement of the estate.

They expressed their grievances to journalists, while reiterating that the estate had been mismanaged as a result of bad management and there were no transparency, accountability and fairness in the treatment of residents and owners of the place, who had paid money to acquire it.

While shedding light on the issue at hand, Tayo Soetan, chairman, 1004 Home Owners and Residents Association, said they all bought flats in 1004 Estate when UPDC and Union Homes offered to sell flats to the general public with the believe that we were moving into an estate that was going to be well managed.

He disclosed that most of the home owners and residents moved in 2010 and from 2010 till early 2011 when the core investors exited and handed it over to a company called Hispania, which was purported to be a foreign Spanish company but upon search as CAC, they found out that it belongs to two individuals, of which one of them is Samuel Ukpong.

According to him, “After few months, we found out that Hispania was just a name and we had been deceived into believing a company was taking over 1004 estate but it turned out to be a set of individuals who were ex-UPDC UAC staffs or present UPDC UAC. Since that time the ownership changed till date, it has been a time of torture for everyone in the estate.”

Soetan explained that since Ukpong took over, blended power was sold at N50 per kilowatt hour and the excuse UPDC gave was that it was because the estate was not fully occupied but by the time occupancy picked, rather than bring down the power, Ukpong increased it by 50%.

“Ukpong has done everything to bypass and demonize the association but we have been resolute. Over the years, we have paid billions of money but yet he has not given any account of all the money collected in the last four years. When we insisted in him doing an account, he did something that didn’t in anyway move near the minimum standard of an accounting document,” he added.

He noted that the association’s approach from the beginning was that of engagement as they tried to work with him, setting up committees and meeting with him severally but nothing changed.

“When we bought this place, 1074 flats here paid N320,000 as asset replacement cost and nothing has been done. We are in court against him to challenge his rights to be here and we are going about it the right way by collecting signatures. We have served him notice of termination and we are hiring replacement for him.”

Ehiosu Oviawe, Chairman Security Committee, 1004 estate said the CP Lagos had already been informed about the gathering and the fact that the employment of Samuel Ukpong has been terminated.

He emphasized that the security is doing its best to ensure no resident or home owner gets into violence with the security that is presently working with Ukpong and they have engage the security men not to disrupt any of the residents from being able to receive their guest.

According to Oviawe, “The challenges are that people who want to move out are not allowed because they are made to pay exorbitant charges before they can move out of the estate and people who want to move in cannot for the same reason.”

“We will make sure the transition remains peaceful and people do not step out of their limit and we the home owners and residents are on the right side of the law at every single time,”  he said.