Disputed property demolished by FCT may be subject of litigation

Disputed property demolished by FCT may be subject of litigation

● Lawyer threatens FCT Minister with contempt on behalf of his client

By PHC Telegraph

Controversy is now raging in Abuja in connection with a squabble over the title to a piece of land on which a duplex under construction has been brought down by the Federal Capital Territory Authority, FCTA.

While Alhaji Mohammed Ibrahim Kamba, an Abuja based developer is laying claim to the land, members of the family of the late Alake of Egbaland are insisting that the disputed plot belongs to them.

The FCTA had demolished the duplex under construction at Plot 226, Cotonou Street, Wuse Zone 6 as part of ongoing efforts to protect the Abuja masterplan.

Although there may be other reasons, the authority reportedly acted on the existence of information which showed that the said duplex owned by Kamba was sitting on land owned by  someone else.

The body said its finding indicated that the structure it moved to demolish was being raised on a plot of land originally allocated to the late Alake of Egbaland, Oyepade Lipede.

Threatening Thunder and Brimstone:

But Kamba enraged by the role of the FCTA under the watch of Barrister Nyesom Wike is threatening thunder and brimstone via his lawyer, Okechukwu C. Uju-Azorji.

Kamba’s lawyer has revealed that his client will drag Wike, a lawyer and a Life Bencher to court to face contempt proceedings for what he referred to as abuse of processes.

Uju-Azorji further claimed in the statement he circulated to the media that the plot which is in contention belonged to someone he described as the ‘predecessor in title’ of his client.

He hinted that the predecessor in title built a guest house on the said plot and collected rent for upwards of 25 years before selling it to his client in 2019.

“Alhaji Mohammed Ibrahim Kamba in turn bought the property during the lifetime of the original allottee, Oyebade Lipede,” Uju-Azorji said in the statement.

“When our client commenced the development of the plot including the renovation of the existing guest house, a certain Abuja based legal practitioner took out a direct criminal complaint against our client at the Grade 1 Area Court”, the lawyer asserted.

He revealed that the complaint which accused his client of trespassing also claimed that the property belonged to Oyebade Lipede, the late Alake of Egbaland.

“The suit was dismissed on 1/9/2020 with the Grade 1 Area Court Judge specifically urging the parties to refer the matter to FCT High Court since it has become an issue of title to land”, the lawyer explained.

The counsel stated that the lawyer whose name he did not disclose is yet to approach any court in the federal territory.

‘’Rather than bring an action in court for declaration of title to the land, the said Abuja based legal practitioner was busy approaching different segments of the Federal Capital Territory Administration where it has become obvious that he enjoyed the cooperation of some persons, who unfortunately bought into his narrative that the plot belonged to the late Alake of Egbaland.”

In taking steps to bring down the duplex that has been under construction, the FCTA may have come to the conclusion that Kamba did not possess a valid title.

While Kamba raves and vows he will jail Wike, he is also threatening that he will sue the director of Development Control at the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCTA) for exceeding the scope of his powers.

Land Grabbing, How Land Owners Are Losing Out:

Land grabbing, a hitherto unknown habit in the federal capital Territory, has gradually become commonplace.

Mostly affected by the land grabbing syndrome are plots allocated by Area Councils to residents, families, businessmen and land speculators who are ‏seeking to own property and settle down in the Federal Capital Territory.

However, allottees of plots assigned by the FCTA are also becoming victims of the land grab.

Reports indicate that many in the federal territory are increasingly turning into victims of voracious land grabbers.

Officials familiar with  this disgusting trend disclose that men posing as land developers acting in cohorts with others at large forcefully take over other people’s land.

“They are part of a syndicate with very strong connections to law enforcement agents, men that walk the corridor of power, lawyers and hoodlums who prey on unsuspecting land owners.

“First, they encroach on plots allocated to others, clear all or part of such land and forcefully commence development activities”, a former federal lawmaker who did not want his name in print hinted the Telegraph.

The lawmaker alleged that he was forced to sell hectares of land in Kurudu belonging to him  in order to avoid the disturbance posed by land grabbers.

“Out of the blue, I got an invitation from the police saying someone had petitioned me over my own land.

“I turned up to answer the invitation, wrote a statement but I never set my eyes on the petitioner, not for one day”, he disclosed.