OVER 40 houses built on about 10 acres of land in Ibadan were, last week, sealed off by security operatives in conjunction with the court’s bailiffs at Suwonka village, Olodo area of Ibadan, Oyo State. The exercise was in pursuit of a court judgment delivered recently by an Ibadan high court judge, Justice Solomon Adegboyega Akinteye. The disputed land, according to Justice Akinteye, belongs to Alhaji Jelili Tunde Amusa (the claimant) and not Chief Rasheed Alagbe (aka Olorioko) that sold the land to those who built the houses. As early as 8.00 a.m., about 20 mobile policemen stormed the area in company of the court bailiffs to seal off the houses.
While giving judgment on the case, Justice Akinteye ruled that Alhaji Amusa was the rightful owner of the parcel of land with the property survey number KESH/Y/9255 drawn by Alhaji Y.O. Keshinro on 27th December 1989. Justice Akinteye also awarded N5,000 in favour of Amusa as damages for trespass committed by the defendant on the said land. In an 11-page ruling, Justice Akinteye submitted that “I have read the pleadings of the claimants, listened to the evidence of the witnesses and read the written address of his counsel, Folake Ajayi, who urged me to grant the claims. “As pointed out earlier, the defendant filed a statement of defence but failed to comply with the new court rules as regards front loading of processes and also failed to defend the suit. The statement of defence filed by him is deemed abandoned as pleadings do not take the place of oral evidence.”