Court restrains police, others from Obanikoro’s Abuja property

A Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court has given an order restraining the Nigeria Police from taking over a property in Jahi area of Abuja belonging to former Minister of State for Defence Musiliu Obanikoro’s company.

In an exparte motion filed through its counsel, Adebola Oyeneyin, the firm ­ Bhodes Integrated Limited ­ had prayed the court to restrain the police from further erecting structures on the property.

In the application, the firm also joined the Nigeria Police Force Property Development and Construction Company Limited, minister of FCT as well as the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) as respondents.

The company had prayed the court for an order of interim injunction restraining the police and its property development company, who are first and second defendants in the case respectively, from taking over the land.

After arguing the exparte motion, the presiding judge, Justice A. S. Adepoju, ordered the parties to maintain status quo. ‘’Both parties whether by themselves or by their savants, officers, agents or privies, or otherwise howsoever so described are further restrained from trespassing, erecting, building, occupying, demolishing, disturbing, excavation of soil and alteration of the natural state or interfering with the Plot No. 237 measuring approximately 5957.18m2 bounded by beacon numbers P82. P83, P86401, P86402 and P36403 Cadastral Zone BIS of Sector Center A, Abuja and covered by an offer of Statutory Right of Occupancy dated 21” of November 2019, pending the hearing and the determination of the substantive suit”, the judge held.

The case has been fixed for July l5 for hearing.The affected company had petitioned the chairman of the Police Service Commission (PSC) over the property. The General Manager of the company, Bayo Smith, who signed the petition dated June 5 stated that the portion of land was allocated to the firm by the then Minister of the FCT and current Governor of Kaduna State, Malam Nasir El-Rufai through the then Accelerated Development Programme on April 28, 2007. According to him, the land was further reallocated on February 16, 2012.