Justice G.A Safari of a Lagos High Court sitting in Epe, will tomorrow morning (Tuesday) hear the suit filed by the popular Gafar Oke-Aminu family against a politician, Tola Kasali and eight others, for allegedly preventing them from benefiting from the family land without justifiable reasons.
Other defendants are Jamiu Shittu, Afolabi Kasali, Sharafa Shittu, Pastor Tajudeen Geminiyi and unknown persons.
In the suit delineated EPD/416LMW/18, the claimants led by Sikiru Gafar Oke-Aminu, argued that the Gafar Oke-Aminu family was a sub-branch of the Okusokan family which they and the defendants, representing other branches are a part of.
The claimants, in their suit filed by their counsel, Gbenga Ajala, argued that the ex-commissioner and others are heads and principal members of the other Okusokan Chieftancy family branch who have sidelined them from benefitting from the administration and management of the Okusokan Chieftancy family land.
They explained that the land situated at Otolu and Igbolomi measuring 221.516 hectares with a survey plan No.Ema/LAG/02/LDI drawn 17 years ago, belong to the entire family and benefits accrue to them.
They argued that the defendants, since the demise of the progenitor, Gafar Oke-Aminu (who was the duly appointed Head of the Okusokan Royal family) have allegedly constituted themselves into an autonomous entity running the property of the family without recourse to the entire family as a whole.
Before instituting legal action, Sikiru Gafar Oke-Aminu and four others, noted that they made overtures to the defendants with a bid to having them render accounts and chart a course going forward on how everyone would be carried along, adding that rather than accept the overtures, the defendants allegedly ignored letters written to them two years ago as the letter was neither acknowledged nor responded to.
The claimants, however, urged the court to rule that the property be partitioned among the branches of the family.
But Kasali and others, in a defence filed by their counsel, Lanre Ogunlesi, alleged that the Gafar Oke-Aminu family, were incorrect to insinuate that they were not being carried along in the land administration.
They stressed that the Oke-Aminu was duly represented on the committee constituted by the Okusokan Family to manage the land, saying, the committee had often rendered accounts to all members during the Okusokan family meeting.
Kasali and the eight others alleged that the Gafar Oke-Aminus often stayed away from the meeting where the account on the family land management was often rendered.
They added the crux of the suit filed by Sikiru Garar Oke-Aminu and four others, was because they were not appointed as Baale in Igbolomi, Ibeju-Lekki Local Government Area of Lagos state.