A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory sitting in Apo
on Monday asked the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Ibrahim Idris to file his defence in the suit seeking an order of the court directing the Nigeria Police to halt their forceful and illegal seizure and occupation of the properties and lands at XK Layout, Apo District, Abuja .
The Court of Appeal in Abuja had on May 18, 2017 declared re-allocations of all the plots in the Apo XK layout by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory and the Federal Capital Development Authority to ENL Consortium Limited and Federal Housing Authority as illegal, null and void.
A group called, ‘’Incorporated Trustees of Apo XK Extension Residents Association’’ made up of persons who were initially allocated the over 200 plots of land in the XK Apo Layout, had appealed the judgement of the FCT High Court which delivered on May 27, 2011 in favour of the FCT Minister, FCDA and ENL Consortium Limited.
In the appeal, Yusuf Goya, Isah Aminu and the Incorporated Trustees of Apo XK Extension Residents Association are 1st to 3rd appellants respectively, while the FCT Minister, FCDA, FHA, ENL Consortium Limited and Dr Tumala Muhammed Musa are the 1st to 5th respondents respectively, with Haastrup as the prime-mover of the ENL Consortium Limited.
A unanimous judgement delivered by Justices Mohammed Mustapha, Emmanuel Akomaye Agim and Tani Yusuf Hassan of the Court of Appeal, 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.
The lead judgement read by Justice Mustapha 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”.
Neither Haastrup, FCT Minister, FCDA, FHA nor the ENL Consortium Limited appealed the Court of Appeal judgement, but rather, enlisted the Nigeria Police to disobey the court order and resorted to self-help.
However, after six months of intransigence and refusal to obey the Court of Appeal order, on October 12, 2017, Court officials with the police finally evicted Haastrup and the ENL Consortium Limited.
But on October 28, 2017, the Police connived with Haastrup to resort to self-help by forcefully chasing out the original XK Apo landowners. The police locked the entrance to the estate and remained there to prevent landowners from the place.
Consequently, Yusuf Goya and Aminu Isah filed a suit on behalf of the landowners, with the IGP as the defendant, wherein he is asking the court to order the police to halt their backup to Haastrup’s self-help and disobedience to the court order.
During court proceeding yesterday, Plaintiffs’ lawyer, Valentine Ovia told the court that the IGP was served since November 30, 2017, just as the defendant lawyer, Marilyn Ime said she was just briefed a day before and will require time to file a defence.
While ruling in the plaintiffs’ application that the matter be heard expeditiously, the trial Judge, Justice Sylvanus Oriji directed the Police lawyer to file her response and adjourned the matter till Thursday for hearing, whether the police file or not.
An affidavit tagged affidavit of urgency deposed to by Florence Ebere Chukwudi, averred that the Incorporated Trustees of Apo XK Extension Residents Association were adjudged by the Court of Appeal to be the owners of the property known as XK Layout, Apo District, FCT in suit No CA/A/462/2011.
‘’That on 12th October, 2017, the court bailiffs and policemen enforced the judgement by evicting the judgement debtors from the property which was the subject of the dispute and handed same to the applicants.
‘’That from the 12th October, 2017, the applicants and other owners of the property occupied and resided in peace until the 28th October, 2017 when officers of the Nigeria Police invaded the property and forcefully occupied it without the contestant of the Applicants.
‘’That Applicants were informed that it was judgement debtors who instructed the police to forcefully seize the property, evict the Applicants from their homes, luck the gates of the property in brazen violation of the judgement of the Court of Appeal and illegal opposition to the earlier enforcement of that judgement.
‘’That in addition to the forceful eviction, the Nigeria Police locked the gates that serve as the entry points to the land to prevent the applicants and other house owners from returning to their homes’’.
Consequently, applicants asked the court to, “order on the police to abate the forceful and illegal seizure and occupation of the appellants’ properties and lands at XK Layout, Apo FCT and vacate from the said properties and lands of the applicants immediately.’’