7-Meter Danger: Club 20 Residents in Akure Raise Alarm Over Petrol Station Approved Near Borehole, School
Tension is brewing in the Club 20 State Residential Estate along Ilesha Road, Akure, as residents have strongly condemned the Ondo State Government’s approval of a petrol station project in the middle of their community, warning that it poses a grave threat to lives and properties.
The Club 20 Residents’ Association called on Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa through the Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, to urgently withdraw the approval granted to Areytom Int’l Nigeria Limited.
The residents in Club 20, through their legal representative Femi Emodamori, expressed concern that the new filling station project — cited on Block B, Plot 4 of the Estate — poses “monumental dangers” to the community. According to them, the station is located just seven meters away from the community’s only borehole and directly opposite Telnet International School, where children cross daily via zebra crossings.
Club 20 Residents Petitions The State Government
In a petition sent to the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, Club 20 residents warned that the citing of a petrol station in a densely populated residential area risks contamination of the borehole, increased traffic hazards for schoolchildren, exposure to noxious fumes, and possible fire outbreaks.
Femi Emodamori, also noted that earlier this year, letters were written to several MDAs — including the NMDPRA offices in Akure and Abuja, the State Ministry of Lands, the State Ministry of Environment, and the State Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development — but no action has been taken.
The Club 20 community recalled that in 2009, a similar attempt to site a petrol station in the Estate was reversed by the same Ministry after it admitted the land was strictly designated for residential use. Residents are dismayed that the government has now chosen to repeat the same mistake.
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“It is regrettable that despite this clear precedent, the Ministry has now chosen to approve another filling station in the same Estate, in direct violation of the Ondo State Urban and Regional Planning Law (2010), the Ondo State Building and Sub-Division Regulations (1984), and the National Urban Development Policy,” the petition stated.
Citing Section 14(2)(b) of the 1999 Constitution, which makes the security and welfare of citizens the primary duty of government, the residents accused the Ministry of showing “zero concern” for their safety and that of schoolchildren in the area.
“On the premise of the foregoing, our client is calling on your esteemed office to as a matter of urgency withdraw the illegal approval granted for the Petrol Station on Block B, Plot 4, State Residential Layout, Along Ilesha Road, Akure,” the letter said.
Construction work has already begun, with excavation for underground tanks currently underway. The residents have vowed to pursue legal action if the government fails to revoke the approval.
“Our client has no choice but to take appropriate legal steps to protect their lives, properties, and environment,” the petition added.
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