Eleazer Heman Dangombe V. Bitrus Isah Lassanjang (2016)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report – COURT OF APPEAL

BIOEBELE ABRAHAM GEORGEWILL, J.C.A.(Delivering the Leading Judgment)

This is a cross appeal against the judgment of the High Court of Gombe State sitting in its appellate jurisdiction in Appeal No: GM/29A/2012: Bistrus Isah Lassanjang V. Heman Dangombe Lapan delivered on 8/4/2013 by M. A. Pindiga J and S. Y. Abubakar J, in which the judgment of Upper Area Court I, Gombe affirming the judgment of the Area Court Burak declaring title to the land in dispute situate at Lasanjang to the Cross Appellant was set aside and an order remitting the case to the Upper Area Court I Gombe to ?evaluate evidence and give judgment in accordance with the law? was made.

?The Cross Appellant was dissatisfied with the said judgment and had sought and obtained the leave of this Court, while the main appeal filed against the said judgment by the Cross Respondent was pending, to cross appeal against the said judgment. The Notice of Cross Appeal was subsequently filed on 12/10/2015. The Cross Appellant further sought and obtained the leave of this Court to rely on the record of appeal as duly transmitted to

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this Court in the main appeal on 27/6/2014. The Cross Appellant filed a joint Respondent/Cross Appellant brief, as allowed by Order 18 Rule 7 of the Court of Appeal Rules 2011, on 5/11/2015. The Cross Respondent filed a joint Appellant/Cross Respondent Reply brief on 26/2/2016.

At the hearing of the Cross Appeal together with the main appeal on 7/4/2016 pursuant to the order of consolidation of the main appeal and cross appeal made by this Court on 22/2/2016, the learned counsel to the Cross Appellant, Sati Benjamin Esq, appearing with I. S. Sikkam Esq, adopted the joint Respondent/Cross Appellant?s brief as his argument in support of the Cross Appeal and urged the Court to allow the Cross Appeal and to set aside the judgment of the Court below while affirming the concurrent judgments of the Upper Area Court 1, Gombe and Area Court Burak.

On his part, learned senior counsel to the Cross Respondent, M. A. Galaya Esq, adopted his joint Appellant/Cross Respondent?s Reply brief as his argument in opposition to the Cross Appeal and urged the Court to dismiss the appeal but yet set aside the judgement of the Court below together with the

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concurrent judgments of the Upper Area Court 1, Gombe and the trial Area Court Burak and in its place invoke the provisions of Section 15 of the Court of Appeal Act 2004 and to declare title to the land in dispute to the Cross Respondent on the strength of the credible evidence led by him before the trial Area Court Burak as in the printed record of appeal.

The gist of this Cross Appeal has been fully captured in the judgment in the main appeal but suffice to restate it that the Cross Appellant as Plaintiff had instituted Suit No: CV/52/2011: Bitrus Isah Lassanjang V. Heman Dangombe Lapan claiming declaration of title to the land in dispute situate at Lassanjang against the Cross Respondent as Defendant on the ground of being the first person to clear and cultivate the land in dispute.

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The Cross Respondent?s father, now late who was the original Defendant, denied the claim of the Cross Appellant. At the trial before the trial Area Court Burak the Cross Appellant called 6 witnesses who testified as PW1, PW2, PW3, PW4 PW5 and PW6 and closed his case. The Cross Respondent called 7 witnesses who testified as DW1, DW2, DW3, DW4, DW5, DW6 and DW7

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and closed his defence. See pages 56 ? 69 of the record of appeal.