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| Lagos A.G., Moyo Onigbanjo (SAN) Fielding Questions From Press During A Function |
By SAM POPOOLA, Lagos
No fewer than 144 Evictees Of Eric Moore Towers, Surulere in Lagos have accused just appointed Hon Attorney General and Commissioner of Justice Lagos State, Mr Moyo Onigbanjo (SAN) for depriving them benefit of reaping fruits of the judgement they obtained six years ago by stalling it at the Court of Appeal, Lagos.
Speaking with TheCaveat.info at the Court of Appeal Lagos division on Tuesday, the evictees said the Attorney General, working for Hon. Moshood Salvador, has been filing one process or the other just for the purpose of stalling the case at the appellate court.
The case instituted in December 8, 2005 had a re-hearing order on March 27, 2013. The re-hearing took place before Justice I. N. Buba of the Federal High Court Lagos on 21/10/2013 and judgement delivered on 21/11/2013 which led to the current appeal.
It was fixed for hearing at the Court of Appeal in Lagos on October 22, 2019 but could not hold for no reason. Only the evictees and their lawyer, Barrister Daniel Makolo was in court. No new date was given either.
"We urge the Court of Appeal in Lagos to hear our matter on the merit based on the laws and facts presented before it in this case and we ask Nigerians to prevail on the court and watch our backs hence we are in contest with "powerful Nigerians in power especially in charge of law, justice and order in Lagos and Nigeria at large", the evictees lamented.
Armed with evidence of true and genuine occupancy of Eric Moore Towers, the Evictees stormed the Federal High Court in Lagos, led by their lawyer and obtained a judgement delivered in their favour by Hon Justice Ibrahim Buba, a fearless judge of the Federal High Court Lagos on the 21/11/2013.
Dissatisfied, TheCaveat.info reports that one Barr. Opanubi, on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Housing and 2 others, who are the respondents in the case filed a notice of appeal on 29/11/2013.
It was further gathered that the appeal was settled and finally ready for hearing in 2014, thereafter, Mr Onigbanjo (SAN) was said to have jumped into the appeal, claiming to represent Dock Management company represented on the surface by Hon Moshood Salvador, believed to be working for Dr. Mimiko.
Dr Mimiko, then Hon Minister of Housing, was believed to have directed eviction of the occupants of the towers, despite the world outcry then and all strongly worded resolutions of both chambers of the National Assembly of Nigeria, ordering Mimiko and the implementation committee to stop the barbaric and dastardly act of the eviction.
The residents in spite of the court order from the Federal High Court Lagos, were evicted in the most dastardly manner finally in the middle of one night in 2005.
The evictees' 144 families and their dependants suffered untold hardship on the streets of Lagos helplessly.
Their representatives led by Barr Daniel Makolo reapproached the Federal High Court Lagos. After tenacious struggle to Court of Appeal in 2008, another in CA/660/2010 wherein the Court of Appeal ordered the rehearing of the case in March 2013 which led to the current appeal by the implementation committee.
With the on going appeal Barr Onigbanjo suo moto (on his own) was said to have jumped into the appeal, stalling the hearing ever since, and allegedly using the powers of his Silk as SAN.
It was further gathered that after several adjournments, the evictees wrote to the implementation committee to clarify who is the actual lawyer in the matter which they replied that it's Barr Opanubi and not Onigbanjo (SAN) who was confronted in open court with the implementation committee letter.
"Thereafter he claimed to represent Dock Management Ltd fronted by the all powerful Hon Moshood Salvador", an evictee volunteered.
In 2017, the Court of Appeal was said to have granted Dock Management leave to go and file her appeal, it filed only notice of appeal and went to sleep.
The Ministry of Housing and the implementation committee's appeal which became ripe for hearing since 2014 was set down for hearing on October 22, 2019, about the 12th times of such adjournments, for the adoption of process of the parties for the appeal by the Minister of Housing and the implementation committee.
"We are coming from different parts of Nigeria. I flew into Lagos again yesterday for the appeal today (October 22, 2019), the evictees' lawyer, Barrister Daniel Makolo told TheCaveat.info at the Court of Appeal, Lagos on Tuesday.
He said it is a simple case of a landlord and tenant matter dealing with the residue of the landlord proprietary rights between forcefully evicted tenants and Dock Management Ltd, who is claiming and smuggled into the property by the agent of the landlord despite the landlord's expressed unilateral covenant code in an act of the National Assembly a 2002 Act from NASS.
"This simple case started since 2005 is still at the Court of Appeal due to Nigeria factor of big man versus poor men. This is absurd", he said.
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