From: Bamigbola Gbolagunte, Akure
An Ondo State High Court, sitting in Akure, the state capital, has ordered the state-owned automobile market in Akure to be
sealed off.
This was sequel to what the court termed ‘contempt of its earlier order’
by the state government, as the court had earlier ordered occupants of
the market to vacate it.
With the development, the automobile dealers occupying the premises
would vacate the land until further notice.
Owners of the land, Chief Taye James and Mr. Idowu Onanuga, had dragged
the state government to court for illegally acquiring the land.
The court had, in a judgment, delivered by Justice A.O. Adebusoye, in 2014,
ruled that the government should vacate the property.
It further ruled that “The first claimant is entitled to a statutory right of occupancy over the property.”
According to the counsel of the claimants, Mr Kehinde Ojo, the government had allegedly disobeyed the court order on the land.
He said “We have made several moves to the government to honour the
initial judgment but to no avail, hence the reason we went back to the court for enforcement of the judgment.”
One of the owners of the land, Chief James said he would give the
government options of giving him back the land as directed by the
court or the defendant should give him N100 million as compensation.
He noted that the immediate past government of Dr. Olusegun Mimiko
agreed to pay them N100million as compensation but the money was not
paid until the government left in February this year.
He declared that the government should pay the money or vacate the land.
In his reaction, the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Rotimi Akeredolu, Mr. Segun Ajiboye, said the government would study the court ruling and take further action on it.