LAND GRABBERS USING WRONG COURT JUDGEMENT TO TAKE OUR LAND, NASCO ESTATE LANDLORDS CRY OUT

AMUWO ODOFIN, Lagos, Nigeria – The landlords of NASCO Estate in Amuwo Odofin Local Government Area of Lagos State have cried out to the Federal Government over attempt by land grabbers to use wrong consent judgment to eject them from their legitimately acquired land. The landlords stated that NASCO is their landlords, and the Federal Government leased the land to NASCO and even gazetted it.

They insisted that neither NASCO nor the Federal Government was a party to the consent judgment which the land grabbers are relying on to encroach on their land. According to them, “even the land which is the subject matter of the judgment is different from the one they are presently encroaching on”. They stated emphatically that the land grabbers were executing the judgment on another person’s land.

The lawyer to NASCO and the association, Mr. Iheanyi Emeh explained that the entire stretch of land called Nasco Estate belongs to NASCO Estate Nigeria Limited by virtue of a Lease between the Federal Government of Nigeria and the company, entered in 1978.

“In 1994, one Michael Mojisola Cole filed suit No.ID/1134/94 between Michael Mojisola Cole vs Agbojojoye family, the original land owners (Omonile) from whom the Federal Government of Nigeria acquired the land and thereafter leased to NASCO after paying compensation to the Family. The Family entered settlement with Mojisola Cole wherein they agreed to give him 42 Acres of land as replacement for the 100Acres he bought from them at any other location other than the Federal Government acquired land leased to NASCO.

“However, in February 2018, some land grabbers purporting to be Attorneys to Mojisola Cole (now late) entered NASCO land purporting that they were executing judgment in the earlier Suit No.ID/1134/94. They refused to avail us of the copy of the judgment they were executing. The Police were called in to intervene. The Police in turn sought for clarification from the office of the Surveyor General of the Federation as to the boundaries of NASCO land vis a vis Mojisola Cole’s land.

“In its response to the Police enquiry, the Office of the Surveyor General stated emphatically that the matter is not one of boundary dispute but a case of complete trespass into NASCO’S land by the acclaimed Attorneys of Mojisola Cole. Nevertheless, the land grabbers have remained on NASCO’S land because they are aided and goaded by some top security officers.”

Also speaking, the Accounts Manager, NASCO, Dr. Mustapha Suleiman noted that the case has been on for long. But there has never been a time anybody joined them or the federal government that leased the land to them in a suit concerning the land. There has never been any contention about the ownership of the land.

The residents allege that they are subjected to incessant harassment, threat to life and encroachment on their land by land grabbers under the protection of an alleged ‘Order from above’. According to one of them who spoke on condition of anonymity, said there was an order from Inspector General of Police at a time to raid the thugs used by the land grabbers that are making lives unbearable to them.

“Police from Festac came here and arrested some of the boys but before you know it, they were released. Another time, the matter was reported to Zone 2 and after investigation, they sent their men. They even arrested some of boys with weapons, surprisingly, order came from the same Zone 2 that they should be released. Since then we have not heard from the police.”

According to the chairman of the estate, Chief Osita Ekpunobi they have lived peacefully in the Estate for 20 years until February and March when the land grabbers invaded the estate with thugs on the strength of the consent judgment that is meant for another land.

“They padlocked our gates; claiming they won the land in the court. We requested them to serve us the court papers but they did not. So we traced the suit number in the court and discovered that the matter does not concern us, neither NASCO our landlord nor the federal government that leased the land.

“Despite that, the land grabbers have not ceased to molest us. They even erected gate at the entrance/exit of the estate but we opposed it; because there was no way someone who does not live in the estate could hold keys to the gate.”

“Therefore, we beg the Federal Government and Inspector General of Police to intervene urgently and save our lives and land. And also reassure us that the provision in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (Sections 43, 44,) that the citizens can genuinely acquire landed properties in any part of the country is still true.”