Court lifts injunction on Ile Arugbo, awards penalties against Asa investment

Date: 2020-08-07

Kwara State High Court on Thursday lifted the interim injunction restraining the state government from constructing anything on the civil service clinic land (alias Ile Arugbo) following repeated failure of counsel to the claimant Asa Investment Limited to appear before the court to fully prosecute its case.

The Asa Investment Limited, which is purportedly owned by the late Olusola Saraki, had taken the Kwara State Government to court after the latter reclaimed the land which it said was unlawfully taken over by the firm without any right of occupancy or payment to the owner, the state government.

The court, presided over by Justice Abiodun Adebara, also awarded a penalty of N200,000 each in favour of all the four defendants (Kwara State Governor, Attorney General, House of Assembly, and Bureau of Lands) and another N50,000 to the police on account of the failure of the claimant to allow the case to proceed to hearing on various occasions.

Justice Adebara took the decision after the counsel to the claimant Akin Onigbinde SAN again failed to attend the court session on Thursday. Onigbinde instead sent a letter, accompanied with a medical report, saying he was advised to undergo bed rest between 3rd and 10th of August, 2020.

After many adjournments at the instance of the claimant, Onigbinde had again on on July 8th agreed to an adjournment for July 22nd but he later said he could not make the sitting.

That led to the adjournment to August 6th which Onigbinde again did not attend allegedly on medical grounds.

Salman Jawondo, Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in Kwara State who appeared for the government, said the claimant was “deliberately wasting the time of the court” and urged Justice Adebara to dismiss the case for lack of diligent prosecution and to award N250,000 penalty each against the claimant and in favour of the defendants.

Jawondo, who insisted that Asa Limited was just buying time with the numerous adjournments, wondered why other counsel to the claimant cannot continue with the case in the absence of Onigbinde.

The Police, which is the fifth defendant in the case, aligned with the government’s position that the case should be struck out.

The court awarded only N200,000 each in favour of the first four defendants and another N50,000 in favour of the police.

Justice Adebara however adjourned the matter to 23rd and 24th of September to allow the claimant’s counsel to continue the case, warning that he would not grant any other adjournment after this.

The government had in January reclaimed the land which it said was originally meant for the construction of the civil service secretariat but was unlawfully gifted out to a private firm in 2005 without any payment or certificate of ownership. Asa Investment Limited, which claims ownership of the land, thereafter challenged the action of the government in the court.

 


Cloud Tag: What's trending

Click on a word/phrase to read more about it.

Dankaka     Mohammed Jimoh Faworaja     Galadima     Kwara Hotel     Isaac Gbenle     Sam Onile     Ministry Of Women Affairs And Social Development     National Broadcasting Commission     Umar Yakubu Jaja     IHS Towers     Osi     Ajeigbe     2023 Elections     Isiaka Rafiu Mope     Police Commissioner     Mohammed Halidu     Yusuf Abdulraheem     Samari     Ambassador Kayode Laro     Seed Technologies     Gwanara     Local Government Pension Board     Femi Oladiji     Okin Biscuits     Yahaya Jibril Usman     Salihu Ajia     Ahman Pategi University     Abdulsalam Firdaous Amosa     Rex Olawoye     Park     Sola Saraki University     Olatomiwa Williams     Ijagbo Health Centre     Kola Bukoye     Suleiman Idris     Suleiman Rotimi Iliasu     Segun Abifarin     Abdulrazak Shehu Akorede     Eleja Taiwo Banu     Rabiu Kwankwaso     Shuaib Olarongbe     Raliat Elelu-Habeeb     Moro     Babatunde Ajeigbe     Azeez Salawu     Harrison Osauwagboe     Muhammad Akande Olarewaju Odunade     Ahmad Belgore     Women For Change And Development Initiative     TESCOM     Aliyu Olatunji Ajanaku     Isiaka Oniwa     Funke Adedoyin     Salman Jawondo     Adegoke Bamidele     Abdullahi AbdulMajeed     Jaiz Bank     Saka Abimbola Isau     NIPOGA     Abdulrauf Aliyu     PharmAccess Foundation     Lithium     Oro Grammar School Old Students Association     Obuh     Olufolake Abdulrazaq     Olohungbebe     Ghali Muhammed     Olatunde Jare     Abdulganiyu AbdulAzeez     Fatai Adeniyi Garba     Ahmad Uthman     Senior Ibrahim Suleiman     Muslim Media Watch Group Of Nigeria     Sunday Otokiti     Mansurat Amuda-Kannike     Najim Yaasin     Abdulrahman Abdulrasaq    

Cloud Tag: What's trending

Click on a word/phrase to read more about it.

REO CAKES     Aremu Bose Deborah     Umar Sanda Yusuf     Makama Of Ilorin     KwaraLearn     Oke-Ero     Pius Abioje     Mutawali     Idi-Ape     Kehinde Boyede     Hydroelectric Power Producing Areas Development Commission     Doyin Group     Okanlawon Musa     Ahmad Uthman     Olatunde Jare     Abdulwahab Oba     Saad Omo\'ya     Muhammad Sirajo Aliyu     Abdulganiyu Salahudeen     Nigeria Computer Society     Www.Kwarareports.com     Kudirat Arinola Lawal     Abdulmalik Bashir Mopelola Risikatullahi     AbdulQowiy Olododo     Mogaji Aare     Yahaya Seriki     Shaykh Luqman Jimoh     Mashood Dauda     Ajayi Okasanmi     Folorunsho Alao     Salman Suleiman     Bio Ibrahim     Ganmo Power Sub-Station     BIR     Folajimi Aleshinloye     Aminu Ado Bayero     Elese Of Igbaja     Oya State     Femi Ogunsola     GGDSS Pakata     Ike Ekweremadu     Abdulrazaq Magaji     A.E. Afolabi     Damilola Yusuf Adelodun     Government High School Adeta     John Olobayo     Soffiyyallah Kamaldeen     Ibrahim Abikan     Yahaya Dumoye     Bamikole Omishore     Firdaos Amasa     Asa LGEA School     Dan Iya Of Ilorin     Pategi     Raliat Islamic Foundation     Mustapha Olanipekun     Dasuki Belgore     Kemi Adeosun     Esuwoye     Okoolowo     COVID-19 Palliatives     Oba Abdulrahim     Awodun     SDP     Gobirawa     Muslimah Entrepreneurship Forum     Akanbi-Oke     NSCIA     Ajibola Saliu Ajia     Chief Imam Of Offa     Muhammadu Buhari     Bilikis Oladimeji     Gobir Organization Foundation     Idris Garba     Saka Asiat Ayinke     Kunbi Titiloye     Issa Oloruntogun