Featured

Police Enforce Appeal Court Judgment Reinstating Titles To 400 Allottees

Published

4 years ago

October 3, 2022

Joel Ajayi
The FCT Police Commissioner, Mr Babaji Sunday on Thursday September 29 sent 20 policemen to enforce the Court of Appeal judgement that reinstated members of the ‘’Incorporated Trustees of Apo XK Extension Residents Association’’ titles to over 400 plots of land.

The policemen accompanied about seven bailiffs from the FCT High Court to serve the Court of Appeal enrolment order and the high court’s Warrant for Possession or the Writ of Possession to the current occupants of the land.

The bailiffs also pasted the court documents evicting current occupants at estate’s gate and on every nooks and corners their premises.

The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja had on May 18, 2017 had set aside decision of the FCT High Court and declared the re-allocations of over 400 plots of land that constitute the Apo XK Lay-out by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory and Federal Capital Development Authority to ENL Consortium Limited and Federal Housing Authority as illegal, null and void.

In the unanimous judgement delivered by Justices Mohammed Mustapha, Emmanuel Akomaye Agim and Tani Yusuf Hassan on May 18, 2017, ordered the FCT Minister, FCDA and ENL Consortium Limited to immediately halt the acts of trespass and to remove all machinery or personnel from the plots of land situated within XK Layout, Apo District which belongs to the appellants.

In the lead judgement read by Justice Mustapha, he said, ‘’having resolved all the issues that call for determination in this appeal against the respondents, this appeal succeeds and it is allowed, the judgement of the trial court is hereby set aside.

The Apo (XK) Extension Annex Layout was designed by the Federal Capital Development Authority and C-of –O issued to would be residents in 1995.But by April 2009, the Minister of Federal Capital Territory and FCDA began to demolish building s which were at various stages of development without giving reason for so doing or give any compensation.

The victims formed an association and consequently filed a motion ex-parte dated May 27, 2009 before the FCT High Court seeking interlocutory injunction to restrain FCT Minister, FCDA, Abuja Municipal Council, Abuja Metropolitant Management and Development Control Department as 1st to 5th defendants, from further demolition.

On July 31, 2009, Justice O.O.Goodluck ordered the defendants from trespassing, encroaching on or interfering with plots XK Apo Extension Layout Annex, pending the determination of the substantive suit.

But on October 5, 2009, the then FCT Minister, now Senator Adamu Aliero authorize FCDA to allocate the over 200 plots covering 78 hectares that make up XK Apo Extension Layout Annex to the Federal Housing Authority (FHA)
Subsequently, FHA gave the over 400 plots to one ENL Consortium Limited, owned by former Osun state deputy Governor, Clement Adesuyi Haastrup.

However, FHA, FCDA and FCT disobeyed the court restraining order just as the ENL Consortium went ahead to be building estate houses on the plots.

But on May 27, 2011, Justice O.O. Goodluck of the FCT High Court delivered judgment in the matter. He dismissed the suit, and held that each allottee claiming occupation and allocation must establish their legal right on their plots. But the trial judge declared the title of the 5th respondent, Dr Tumala on the plot he owed as valid, awarded damages of N1 million also in his favour alone, against the ENL Consortium Limited, FHA, FCDA and FCT minister.

Dissatisfied with the judgement, both the ‘’Incorporated Trustees of Apo XK Extension Residents Association’’ filed appeal with No. CA/A/462/2011 dated June 20, 2011, and listed FCT Minister, FCDA, FHA, ENL Consortium Limited and Dr Tumala Muhammed Musa as 1st to 5th respondent respectively.

The appellants asked the Court of Appeal to declare they are the lawful allottees or occupants of the parcel of land known as ‘’Apo XK Layout situated within the FCT.
They asked the appellate court to hold that the trial judge err in law when he said that ‘’in praying for declaration of the title or lawful occupation, each allottee is a necessary party’’ thereby occasioning a miscarriage of justice.

The Appeal Court had held that the purported revocations of the titles of the plaintiffs to the land in dispute is illegal, and therefore void and ordered the Federal Housing Authority or their agents to abate the acts of trespass and remove all personnel or machinery from the land. It also awarded a N2 billion damages in favour of the appellants.

The Supreme Court had on June 6, 2018 in the Chambers ruling by Justices Olabode Rhodes-Vivour, Mary Ukaego Peter-Odili, John Inyang Okoro, Chima Centus Nweze and Sidi Dauda Bage struck out the ENL Consortium Limited appeal No. SC.9/2018. Justice Rhodes-Vivour who read the lead judgement simply said ‘’Appeal struck out’’, perhaps for wants of diligent prosecution.

Meanwhile, the Federal Housing Authority had also on June 6, 2018 applied to the Supreme Court seeking for extension of time to seek leave to appeal against the judgement of the Court of Appeal’
They asked the apex court to ‘’grant application for staying execution of the judgement of the Court of Appeal delivered on May 17, 2011 pending the determination of the application or where the application is successful, pending the determination of the appeal arising from the application’’

However, the Federal Housing Authority had with regard to their application/appeal No. SC.613/2018 on March 1, 2022 applied for withdrawal of its application, and hence was struck out.

In the lead judgement delivered by the current Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Olu Ariwoola, held that ‘’ upon reading the application herein and the affidavit of Onyebu Josephine Iheko sworn to and filed on the 29th June, 2018 and after hearing M.S.Agwu Esq., of counsel for the Appellant; Valentine Offia Esq.,of counsel Respondent; A.M. Umar Esq.; of counsel for the 2nd Respondent; S.I. Ameh (GodwinOgboji Esq, with him)of counsel for the 3rd Respondent; Adebayo Adedeji Esq.; of counsel for the 4th and 5th Respondents; B.J. Akomolafe Esq.; of counsel for the 7th Respondent.

‘’It is ordered; that application filed on the 29th day of June, 2018 having been withdrawn is hereby struck out’’, Justice Ariwoola held.

Meanwhile, after the policemen and the court bailiffs have left the premises, the ENL Consortium and FHA officials mobilized over 50 touts with machetes to chase original allottees out of the premises.

Share on Facebook

Featured

Alake Inaugurates Nigeria-US Solid Minerals Committee, Dismisses $700bn Claim, Says No Assets Sold

Published

12 hours ago

October 28, 2026

The Gleamer

Joel Ajayi

The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake, on Tuesday inaugurated the Nigeria-United States Committee on Strategic Cooperation in the Solid Minerals Sector in Abuja, dismissing reports that Nigeria sold $700 billion worth of solid minerals to the US.

The inauguration followed the strategic cooperation framework established between Nigeria and the United States during the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York.

In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Head PRESS and Public Relations Department Mrs. Kania Maliki Andeyaba stated that, Alake in the Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, signed with the US is a government-to-government platform to facilitate business-to-business engagements between American investors and Nigerian local operators, not a sale of assets.

Harping on the importance of the solid minerals sector to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s economic diversification agenda, he noted that the administration was committed to reducing dependence on a mono-product economy through the sustainable development of Nigeria’s vast mineral resources.

According to him, the Nigeria–US partnership as a strategic initiative to attract investment, promote technology transfer, strengthen local mineral processing and create employment opportunities.

“There is no sale of any Nigerian asset. There’s nothing exchanging hands,” Alake declared.

“We created a platform to facilitate mingling of US investment ventures with Nigeria’s local operators. It is in the public domain. We signed it in public and published it in four or five national newspapers.”

The Minister said reports claiming the US was coming to take over Nigeria’s minerals and security architecture were untrue at best and products of riotous imagination at worst.

Explaining the policy thrust, Alake said Africa has historically held the short end of the stick in global economic transactions, and Nigeria is determined to change that model.

“We have the resources, the critical elements the world needs to transit to clean energy. So we are creating a new paradigm — you bring your capital, expertise and technology, to match with our natural resources and create a win-win situation . The investor gains, Nigeria gains.’’he said.

Nigeria, he stressed, had operated a mono-cultural economy dependent on oil, while solid minerals were exploited informally — with ores taken “from pit to port” without value addition.

Alake said government has now made local processing mandatory, refusing to grant mineral titles to investors without a clear pathway to processing in Nigeria.

He said the policy led to the springing up of processing factories, including the largest lithium processing plant in West Africa commissioned recently in Nasarawa by the Vice President, and informed the formation of the African Minerals Strategy Group.

Alake noted that investor confidence has returned due to macro-economic reforms by President Bola Tinubu that guarantee security of tenure and repatriation of profits.

He charged the committee to discharge its assignment responsibly, saying its work is strategic to achieving the President’s $1 trillion economy target.

To this end, he told the Committee to ensure effective coordination, identify investment opportunities and translate the framework into measurable outcomes capable of positioning Nigeria as a competitive player in the global solid minerals industry.

In his welcome address, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Engr. Faruk Yusuf Yabo, said the inauguration translates growing bilateral engagements into a structured framework for practical cooperation and investment mobilization

Economic Officer at the US Embassy, Jonathan Baas, said President Donald Trump has prioritized three areas for US embassies — energy, artificial intelligence/super intelligence, and critical minerals.

Baas said Washington’s direction is to work with partners to secure critical supply chains while ensuring partners capture value.

“We just signed a contract today on looking into building AI data centres in Nigeria at the Nigerian Economic Summit. That’s the direction Washington wants us to go,” he said.

In his vote of thanks, CEO/Managing Director of Nigeria Solid Minerals Company, NSMC said that the committee

is expected to coordinate implementation, facilitate investment and monitor progress towards achieving the objectives of the Nigeria–US cooperation framework.

The inauguration reinforces the Federal Government’s commitment to repositioning the solid minerals sector as a key driver of economic diversification, industrial development and national prosperity under President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

Share on Facebook