The Cross River State Government has issued a quit notice to illegal occupants of land belonging to the University of Cross River State (UNICROSS), declaring its resolve to recover all encroached portions of the institution’s property.
The directive followed renewed complaints by the university management over increasing encroachment on its land, which authorities say is already affecting the institution’s expansion and academic development plans.
Speaking during an inspection of the affected areas, the Special Adviser to Governor Bassey Otu on Asset Management and Recovery, Barr. Gilbert Agbor, said the state government would take immediate action to reclaim the land from trespassers.
According to him, the governor has directed that all encroached portions of the university land be recovered without compromise, warning illegal occupants to vacate immediately or face enforcement measures.
Agbor further disclosed that the government had ordered the stoppage of supply routes for building materials into the affected areas as part of efforts to halt ongoing construction activities on the disputed land.
Reacting to the development, the university’s Deputy Vice Chancellor (Administration), Prof. Thomas Ojikpong, commended the state government for responding swiftly to the institution’s concerns, noting that the encroachment had reached alarming levels.
Also speaking, the university’s Director of Administration and Council Affairs, Mr. Edem Effiong Ekanem, revealed that recent surveys showed nearly 60 percent of the institution’s land had been encroached upon. He maintained that the land was legally acquired and gazetted by the state government between 1972 and 1974.
