Lagos High Court returns Ikoyi property to family, revokes FG’s possession

The Lagos State High Court, Lands Division, Ikeja Judicial Division, has issued a ruling returning No. 1, Oniru Street, Ikoyi to the owners, excluding it from the properties previously granted to the Federal Government of Nigeria.

This is contained in a judgment document signed by Justice A.M Lawal, the presiding Judge of the court and seen by BusinessDay.

The Federal Government had been granted possession of the Ikoyi property through its legal representative, G. U. Giwa & Co., in a judgment delivered on April 1, 2023.

However, the Lagos judge overturned the earlier judgment after the rightful owners of the property, who had been abroad and unaware of the judgment, filed a notice of preliminary objection on May 31, 2024.

The owners, in their argument, stated that their property was wrongly confiscated without proper diligence, leading the court to reverse the earlier ruling and recognise their rights to the property.

No 1, Oniru Street, Off Bourdillon, Ikoyi, Lagos is owned by the late Ndiokho family and was inherited from UAC.

On June 16, 2022, the Federal Government of Nigeria, through its legal representative, Messrs. G. U. Giwa & Co., filed an originating summons (suit no. ID/3863LMW/2022) seeking possession of the property in question.

The Nigerian government was the plaintiff (claimant), while the occupiers or persons in occupation were named as defendants in the lawsuit.

The government asked the court to grant it possession of seven properties including No 1, Oniru Street, off Bourdillon, Ikoyi, Lagos.

The application was granted on the grounds that the defendants, currently in occupation of the property, were trespassers and occupying the premises without the authorisation or consent of the Federal Government, which was the rightful owner of the property.

The Ndiokho family, represented by their legal team, Adegboyega Adeleke & Co, led by Adewole Adeleke Esq, with A.O Ajesigiri and I.E Ozobodo, filed a motion dated 21st May 2024 seeking an order of court setting aside the possession granted FGN.

Justice Lawal, after considering the submissions of parties, Philip Ndiokho being the 7th defendant, Ima Ofulue being the intervener who filed an affidavit of ownership, set aside the order of possession in the earlier judgment of 1st April 2023.

“Having come to the decision that the ownership claim of Ima Ofulue and the 7th Defendant takes the property No 1, Oniru Street, Ikoyi out of the orbit of Order 57, the judgment entered by this Court is varied by removing No 1, Oniru Street, Ikoyi from the property which this Court granted possession to the Claimant in the judgment of April 1, 2023,” the judgment read.

The court sheriff restored the Ndiokho family to the property on the 10th July 2024, after executing the recent order of the court.