A Cry For Justice

A retired civil servant cries foul over the revocation of his plot of land in Abuja and its allocation to a senator

By Nnamdi Felix/Abuja

The dream of Dr. Michael Nwoye Ogbalu, a former Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, NPHCDA, was to live in Abuja after he retired from service. He therefore applied to the Federal Capital Territory Administration, FCTA, for a piece land on which he intended to build his personal house. In a letter dated 9 April 2002, the FCTA conveyed to Dr. Ogbalu its approval of his request and offered him the right of occupancy to plot number 2557 within Cadastral Zone A04  at the then undeveloped Asokoro Extension. He quickly mobilised to site and fenced the land.

On a visit to the plot early in 2003, however, the medical doctor was shocked to find that a portion of the fence he recently constructed had been demolished. He promptly sent a protest letter to the then Minister of the Federal Capital Territory; Mallam Nasir el-Rufai and copied the Abuja Geographic Information System, AGIS. While waiting for a reply, Dr. Ogbalu engaged the trespassers in discussion and was informed that they were there at the instance of the then governor of Abia State, Chief Orji Uzor Kalu. The supervisor of the workers, one Mr. Emeka Duru, informed him that the land was bought by Chief Kalu from an unnamed land speculator.

On 17 October 2005, a reply came from the AGIS. Signed by one Mr. U.M Baffa, it confirmed the clearing of the said plot in Dr. Ogbalu’s name, adding that it was in the process of issuing him a new certificate of occupancy. He was also informed that a copy of the letter was made to the Director of the Development Control Unit of the Federal Capital Development Authority, FCDA. No action was however taken by the authorities to stop the trespassers from further encroachment on Dr. Ogbalu’s plot of land, forcing him to take the matter to the Abuja High Court on 15 June 2006.

The case, which was assigned to Justice Theresa Orji-Abadua, had Mr. Emeka Duru, the Attorney-General of Abia State and the FCDA as defendants. While proceedings were ongoing in the matter, however, the FCDA, pointing out that it had not taken any step against Dr. Ogbalu’s interest in the said plot of land, brought an application praying that its name be removed from the suit. Justice Abadua subsequently struck out its name as a respondent in the suit. Some weeks later, after it had acknowdged receipt of a N10,000 recertification fee from Dr. Ogbalu, the FCTA, in a letter dated 18 October 2006, notified the medical doctor of its decision to revoke the plot of land earlier allocated him. Titled “Notice of Revocation of Underdeveloped Plot within the Federal Capital City,” the FCTA’s letter claimed it was acting in accordance with the provisions of Section 28 (5) (a) and (b) of the Land Use Act.

The Abuja High Court was to later dismiss Dr. Ogbalu’s suit on 12 December 2006, on the grounds that it was filed in breach of the provisions of Section 2 of the Public Officers Protection Act, Cap 379, Laws of the Federation 1990 and that the suit did not disclose any cause of action against the Attorney-General of Abia State and Mr. Emeka Duru. But the court did not make any pronouncement on the ownership of the land as the FCDA had stated that Dr. Ogbalu’s interest in the plot of land was subsisting.

Upon the dismissal of the suit, Dr. Ogbalu wrote to el-Rufai, reminding him of the  FCTA’s stand before the court to the effect that it had not done anything or taken any steps against his interest in the plot, and urged the Minister to withdraw the notice of revocation and return the plot to him. He also reminded the Minister that he had paid the recertification fee, which qualified him to be issued a new certificate of occupancy for the plot. Till date, Dr. Ogbalu has not received any form of reply to his letter.

A subsequent visit by Ogbalu to the plot revealed why his letter was not replied: a duplex was already being erected on the land, with construction already at the lintel level. Upon enquiries, he was informed that the edifice belonged to Senator Dickson Bob Effiong, a Peoples Democratic Party senator representing Akwa Ibom North-East. He dashed back to court and secured an interlocutory injunction restraining the FCDA and Senator Effiong Bob from entering or attempting to enter, trespassing, reallocating, intimidating or disturbing Dr. Ogbalu over the property pending the determination of the substantive suit. The order was issued by Justice M. A. Nasir on 14 May 2008.

Dr. Ogbalu is challenging the purported revocation of his land by the FCT Administration allegedly on the basis of the provisions of Section 28 (5) (a) and (b) of the Land Use Act. He contended, through his counsel, Mr Femi Ikotun, that the section provides for revocation on the ground of a breach of any provision which a certificate may contain. The lawyer opined that contrary to the position of the FCT Administration that the land was revoked for failure to commence and complete development, as at the date the revocation notice was served on Dr. Ogbalu, there was a fence round the plot with a duplex built up to lintel level.

Mr. Ikotun averred that the Act being relied upon by the FCT Administration for the purported revocation contemplates sanctions in a situation where a holder of title did not undertake any improvement at all and not where a holder has done something substantial as in this case. He stated that his client erected a fence around the plot and this was the position before the trespassers entered the plot and pulled down his fence and commenced building on the plot. This, he said, forced his client to halt further development.

As the legal battle for the ownership of the plot was going on, Senator Effiong and the FCDA plotted to foist a fait accompli on the court by deliberately going ahead with construction work on the contentious plot of land. Effiong, who served as Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice in Akwa Ibom State under former governor Victor Attah, contrived, with the assistance of some officials of the Development Control Unit and the Department of Land Administration of the FCDA, a plan aimed at undermining the wheels of justice, i.e. the DCU looked the other way while Senator Effiong continued to build his duplex on the plot of land, contrary to the order of a competent court.

Dr. Ogbalu has been crying foul since this development and is asking the court to reinstate his interest in the contentious plot of land as it has become evident that the issue of multiple allocations was created as a guise to allocate the land to Senator Effiong.

The matter resumes at the Abuja High Court on 18 February 2010.

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