By Bankole Adesina
Following the December 31, 2020 demolition of buildings and eviction of former residents of Monkey Village, an informal settlement at the Opebi Area of Lagos, the Ruthsville Foundation has called for urgent intervention in what it described as growing humanitarian crisis in the area.
Mrs Catherine Adeniyi, founder of the NGO, which focuses on the welfare of women, youths and children, said it is almost criminal that government would turn a deaf ear to the plights of former residents of the area, even if they had settled on the said properties, illegally ab initio.
She said the lives of over 500 people are at stake, particularly the future of 200 vulnerable children who are amongst them.
“Yes. I now know that 80% of the occupants of the area are not Nigerians. But their children were born here and that makes them citizens,” she said.
“Besides, these people have lived there for over 20 years. And whenever it’s election time, they are always taken in bus loads to vote.”
Meanwhile, the raging tussle over the validity of the demolition exercise and the claim of rightful ownership to the property, has continued unabated.
The executor of the demolition and Chairman of Prosperous Ariori Golden Ventures, Abiodun Ariori, insisted the exercise was lawful and consistent with the state government’s mantra of maximum security and safety of lives and properties, saying, ” it has helped dislodged criminal elements living and hiding in the area.”
Monday Ubani, a legal practitioner and former Second Vice President of the Nigerian Bar Association is challenging the exercise, accusing Ariori of encroaching on his client’s property and wickedly displacing his client’s tenants on the land.
Ubani further accused Ariori of conniving with some land lrabbers and some officials of the Lagos State Government to execute the “invasion”.
But Ariori rebuffed the accusations, arguing that he was only implementing a legitimate mandate from his client, the Meadows Family.
The intensity of the dispute prompted the Lagos State Government’s Ministry of Justice to set up a Panel of Inquiry on Monday, January 10, 2021, to look at the matter, with the aim of resolving it, legally, and amicably, especially between the trio of Ubani, Gilbert Oladehinde Meadows (and Family), and Ariori.
At the Panel sitting yesterday, Ubani, who accused Ariori of encroachment of his clients property, had his purported Certificate of Occupancy claim on the said property rejected by the panelists, who referred to it as a paper that does not have origin.
The lawyer’s plea to the panelists to also instruct the Meadows and Ariori to stop work on the land was also declined, on the ground that the Original Survey of the said land proved that the land is legitimately owned by Gilbert Meadows, who gave the property to Ariori for development.
Frustrated at the turn of events, Ubani dashed out of the panel session in annoyance, but Ariyori took his turn nevertheless, insisting the mandate he was executing was fully backed by “incontrovertible proof” and subsisting judgment of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
Ariori’s counsel, Francis Monye, also corroborated his client, adding that Ubani’ claim that his client has a Certificate of Occupancy over the land was not substantial. He said the lawyer ought to know that a Certificate of Occupancy is mere evidence of title; it is a nullity where no valid title exists.
Monye argued that where an argument has ensued about the originality of the title of document presented on a property, the defendant ought to provide sufficient proof of evidence.
“In the instant case, what is the origin of the title of Mr. Ubani’s Client? He hasn’t supplied details or particulars of the Certificate of Occupancy to the general public so that his claims may be verified, yet he ran to the media space to castigate and cast aspersions on our Client and the Meadows family without any factual justification.
“We make bold to state that the Meadows ownership of the land has been confirmed by the High Court of Lagos State per Famuyiwa V.O J in Suit No: LD/513/80 and also affirmed by the Court of Appeal in Suit No: CA/1/16A/92.
“These judgments are still valid and subsisting. The Supreme Court has declined the Appellants request for leave to appeal by virtue of the ruling in Suit No: SC146/1995. It was upon the dismissal of the Appeal to the Supreme Court by the Appellants that the Meadows Family approached the High Court of Lagos State, in accordance with the Sheriff and Civil Processes Act, for the execution of the judgment in Suit No: LD/513/80, which was carried out on the 30th October 1997.