A Federal Capital Territory High Court in Jikwoyi, Abuja, has granted developers of Trademore Estate, Lugbe, an order for maintenance of status quo on the Federal Government and the organization pending the determination of the substantive suit.
Justice Zubairu Mohammed of the FCT High Court, while delivering Judgment in an interim injunction filed by the real estate agency, restrained the Federal Government, and their employees, agents, officials, privies, and all those purporting to be acting for them or deriving title from them, and any other persons whosoever and whomsoever called, from trespassing, or further trespassing on, demolishing or further demolishing Trademore Estate, known as Plot 1981, Sabon Lugbe, Abuja.
The trial Judge ordered in the said writ of summons filed by Prof Mike Ozekhome, Trademore International Holding had, amongst other reliefs, asked the court to restrain the Minister of FCT, the Federal Capital Development Authority ( FCDA), the Abuja Metropolitan Management Council ( AMMC ) and the Abuja Municipal Area Council ( AMAC ) from demolishing the estate with the buildings and appurtenances thereon; or evicting the occupants from the said Trademore Estate; or from trespassing on in any manner whatsoever, into the Trademore Estate, Lugbe, Abuja; or from carrying out any further or fresh demolition exercise of any structures or buildings in the said estate; or in anyway interfering with the plaintiff’s exclusive right of ownership and possession of the said property.
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Prof Mike Ozekhome, SAN, had on behalf of Trademore Estate filed a suit against some Federal Government functionaries and Agencies who had threatened to further demolish Trademore Estate, Lugbe, Abuja, over issues concerning flooding of the estate.
Trademore Holding in the substantive suit complained to the court earlier about the alleged illegal demolition of buildings belonging to innocent occupants in the estate by agents of the Defendants when it was manifestly clear that the three floodings ever experienced in the estate since it was built in 2007, were all caused, not by the Plaintiff or occupants of the estate, but by acts of gross negligence occasioned by the Defendants.
The Plaintiff also argued, amongst others, that if the Defendants through the Ecological Fund had not built a very narrow carnal instead of a huge bridge to allow free passage of water coming from a now broken down and disused dam that runs through several adjoining settlements, coupled with several unstrained excavatory acts of other developers in the area, there would have been no incidence of flooding in the estate.
The Judge thereafter adjourned the motion on notice for hearing to September 22, 2023.
Editor: Paul Akhagbemhe
