Judgment
PATRICIA AJUMA MAHMOUD, J.C.A. (Delivering the Leading Judgment) : Sometime in 2004, the Plaintiff caused a writ of summons to issue against the Defendants at the Idemili Judicial Division of the High Court of Anambra State. In Paragraph 32 of the Further Amended Statement of Claim dated 2nd July 2013, the Plaintiff claimed the following reliefs against the Defendants: a. A declaration that the land in dispute herein is the property of late Chief R. O. Egbuawa hence the Plaintiff is entitled to the grant of Certificate of Occupancy over the land, the subject matter of this suit. b.
A declaration that the Defendants are not entitled to set up any personal store(s) and/or building(s) on the land in dispute. c. An injunction restraining the Defendants, their agent, servants, and privies or howsoever called from commencing, continuing, and/or completing any stores and/or building etc, structure at all on the land in dispute being the Plaintiff’s personal property. d. General damages of N2m for unwarranted interference in the land in dispute, the personal property of the Plaintiff. The Defendants filed a Further Amended Statement of Defence dated 20th May 2014.
The gist of the case is that the Plaintiff’s father commenced this action against the Defendants claiming that he bought the disputed land from Mr. Chukwujike and was issued with a deed of indenture dated the 3rd October, 1991. Mr. Chukwujike bought the land from the Nwannem family who allegedly own the land. Subsequently, the Plaintiff found that the land is owned by the Achusim family and not the Nwannem family. The Plaintiff then repurchased the land from the Achusim family in 1992.
Much later the Onitsha North Local Government Area of Anambra State entered the land and demolished the structure on it. This resulted in a litigation which was later amicably resolved. Following the amicable resolution of the issues in the litigation, the Plaintiff obtained a leasehold interest from the Onitsha North Local Government. The Plaintiff further averred that the land was revoked by the Anambra State Government in 2001 for overriding public interest.
However, the Plaintiff later applied for the validation of his right over the said land through the State Constituted Investigation Committee for Onitsha New Cemetery Land and paid some fees. The Plaintiff later found that the Respondents have entered upon the land and started developing the land. Hence this action. The Plaintiff passed away and his name was substituted with that of his son. The Defendants on the other hand, claimed that they also purchased the land in dispute from the Nwannem family in 1977. The purchase was evidenced in a deed of conveyance dated 4th January, 1978.
