The Oyo State Government on Wednesday declared that abandoned buildings are serving as hideouts for criminals and therefore constitute security threats to the state.

Commissioner for Lands, Housing, Survey, and Urban Development William Akin-Funmilayo made the declaration when he inspected De Castle Inn on Queen Elizabeth II Road, near Total Garden-Gate Road, Ibadan, where the security guard on duty said the hotel has been abandoned for over 10 years.

While decrying the frequency at which miscreants and hoodlums had been using abandoned buildings as hideouts, Akin-Funmilayo avowed that owners of such buildings who refuse to do the needful should be ready to forfeit them to the state.

“The government got information from the public and security agencies that the structure had been constituting a security threat to the environment, as criminals and hoodlums usually hid there. They go on the streets to snatch telephones, bags, and other valuables from passersby. In addition, it has become a home for illicit drug users, who trade in illicit drugs as well as smoke different kinds of things.

“We are here to confirm what we heard and what we have seen, and this place has been abandoned for the past 10 to 13 years. We are here to ensure the safety of the people living in this environment. So, we have seen for ourselves that this is a completely abandoned building. The government will work within the ambit of the law to take possession of the building to stop what is constituting a threat,” he said.