Ile Arugbo: Court adjourns suit to January 24 for hearing
A Kwara State High Court sitting in Ilorin, the state capital, yesterday fixed January 24, 2020 for commencement of hearing in the case between the state government and Asa Investment Ltd over the disputed land on which the demolished Ile Arugbo, residence of the Olusola Saraki family was built.
Agents of the state government had in a dawn operation on January 2, 2019 demolished some structures on plots of land at the Ilofa road, GRA Ilorin, building belonging to the late Second Republic Senate Leader, Dr Abubakar Olusola Saraki, alleging illegal acquisition.
Dissatisfied with the government’s action, Asa Investments Limited filed a motion ex-parte through its counsel, AbdulAzeez Ibrahim, for stay of execution on the further demolition of the property.
The
court accordingly restrained the defendants and anyone acting on their behalf from further demolishing or destroying the alleged property of the claimant. Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, state House of Assembly, state attorney general and justice commissioner, Director General, Kwara Bureau of Lands and the Inspector General of Police are the defendants in the suit.
Earlier, counsel to Asa Investments Limited, AbdulAzeez Ibrahim had told the court that the case was for hearing on motion on notice for interlocutory injunction.
He added that he had filed motion ex-parte for service on the defendants/ respondents on substituted means.
He told the court that he had not been able to serve the fifth respondent (IGP), saying that the “first to the fourth respondents had been served and they have responded.
But the fifth responded has not been personally served.”
He said the “motion on notice was dated and filed in 13th and 14th January, 2020.
In his reply, state Attorney General and Commissioner of Justice, Salman Jawondo, said “we are opposed to the application of tenure extension of the interlocutory injunction or whatever name it is called. The application is also an invitation to chaos as the case has attracted much heat and attention even beyond its content.”
Ruling on the motion ex-parte for substituted service to the fifth respondent, the presiding judge, Justice A. A. Adebara, granted the application.
Declining to make express statement on the application for tenure elongation of the interlocutory injunction, Justice Adebara urged all the parties in the case to maintain their calm and seek for peaceful resolution of the issue.