Badagry Demolition: Appeal Court Sets Aside Lower Court’s Judgment on Jurisdiction
The Court of Appeal, Lagos Division has set aside the ruling of a Lagos State High Court sitting in Badagry, which declined to hear the case of some Badagry residents who sued the Lagos State Government over alleged unlawful demolition of about 1,500 buildings in the area.
The Justice Sidi Bage-led appellate panel in its judgment delivered last Tuesday also directed that the case file should be returned to the Lagos State Chief Judge for reassignment to another judge entirely.
The Court of Appeal held that the trial judge errred to have hurridly dismiss the suit without addressing the issues by the appellants.
Chief Charles Adu and Twenty-two others had on behalf of the affected persons from Atinporome, Araromi Ale Extension and Mowo Phase 2 communities in Badagry sued the Lagos State Government and others, demanding N100 billion compensation over the demolition exercise, in which theu loss their homes. The communities had in their suit marked BD/EDAMFH/2014 before the Lagos High Court sitting in Badagry sued the Lagos Task Force on Environment and Special Offences Unit, the Inspector-General of Police, Commissioner of Police Lagos State and the Commander, Area K Police Command, Lagos.
Other respondents in the suit are the Ministry of Police Affairs, Lagos State Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, Lagos State Lands Bureau, Attorney-General of Lagos State and Attorney General of the Federation.
They had alleged unlawful invasion and demolition of their properties, indiscriminate arrest, torture and detention by agents of the state.
The communities, who claimed that their communities were invaded at about 4.30am on December 16, 2013, had urged the lower court to declare that the demolition of their properties by agents of the Lagos State government was wrongful, wicked, oppressive and unconstitutional.
They also wanted a pronouncement that the action of the respondents amounted to a breach of their fundamental rights as protected by Sections 33, 34 and 36 of the Constitution.
But Justice Y.A. Adesanya, had, on July 10, 2014, struck out the appellants’ suit after deciding that it fell outside the scope of a fundamental human rights enforcement action.
The lower court judge in her ruling held that the suit centered around ownership of title to property and not a breach of the applicants’ fundamental human rights.
Displeased with Justice Adesanya's judgment, the residents appealed the lower court's decision.
The appellants had sought the reversal of Justice Adesanya's judgment, which struck out their fundamental human rights enforcement suit for want of jurisdiction.
They had in their notice of appeal asked the court to either decide their case on its merits or return the file to the Lagos State Chief Judge, Justice Olufunmilayo Atilade, for reassignment to a new judge for a fresh trial.
In their affidavit, the plaintiffs said that on December 14, 2013, they received a letter from the police that the residents of the area should vacate their houses and land.
According to them, a letter from the Police authority specifically mentioned Agemowo and Agelado Mowo, Badagry, while their own community was at Atiporome, Araromi extension and Mowo Phase 2.
They alleged that on December 16, 2013 at about 4.30 a.m., over 100 armed policemen from the Lagos State Task Force, laid the community under siege and began to pull down their houses with bulldozers.
“Over 1,500 houses were demolished while a six-month old baby was killed in one of the houses demolished, they claimed.
They also alleged that they were not allowed to collect anything from their houses before the demolition, while scores of residents and youths were indiscriminately arrested.