Out-of-court settlement proposed by the State High Court in Ilorin, Kwara State in the case of disputed land property between the Saraki family and the Kwara State Government has hit a brick wall.
Rising from the second meeting in Ilorin on Tuesday, representatives of the state government and Asa Investment Limited said that the meeting ended without a concrete resolution as the meeting ended without any specific adjourned date.
The one-hour meeting started at about 4.48 pm and ended at 5.48 pm.
Speaking with journalists at the end of the meeting held at the conference hall of the Governor’s Office, Ilorin, counsel to Asa Investment Limited, Abdulazeez Ibrahim, said the two parties could not reach any concrete agreement on proposed terms.
ALSO READ: Stop victimising our supporters in Zamfara, Oshiomhole tells Governor Mattawale
“Today is the second time we are meeting on this issue of settlement out-of-court. We met for the first time last Thursday, but up till now, we have not been able to agree on definite terms. We have adjourned for us to meet again and see if we can iron out the proposed term of settlement and counter proposed term of settlement. That’s where we are now. We hope to meet again before the time the case was adjourned by the court. No date yet. We adjourned indefinitely,” he said.
None of the state government’s representatives at the meeting responded to questions from journalists at the end of the meeting.
The State High Court, sitting in Ilorin, had on January 15, 2020, advised parties in the suit to in the interest of peace, explore an out of court settlement over the disputed land on which Saraki’s Ile Arugbo was built.
In another ruling on January 24, 2020, Justice Abiodun Adebara urged the parties to resolve the case amicably before the next adjourned date.
“This court is particularly impressed by the parties for the steps taken to settle out-of-court; they are therefore enjoined to engage in meaningful discussions that will lead to the resolution of the case out-of-court. I wish the parties well in their deliberation.
“With the concurrence of the learned counsel, this case is adjourned to March 2nd for the report of an out-of-court settlement,” he said.