The Attorney-general Of Bendel State & Ors V. P. L. A. Aideyan (1989)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report

NNAEMEKA-AGU, J.S.C. 

This is a further appeal by the Defendants against the judgment of the Court of Appeal, Benin Division, which had dismissed their appeal against the judgment of Moje Bare, J., sitting in a Benin High Court.

The subject-matter of the suit is a four storey building situate on a plot lying opposite the Specialist Hospital, G.R.A., Benin City. The plaintiff, Mr. Aideyan, had bought it from the government lessee thereof, called Owono Ogbemudia Asenmota, who, with all necessary consents, assigned it to the plaintiff in 1970. The plaintiff erected a four story building on the plot.

By a notice published in the Bendel State Gazette No. 219 of the 29th of April, 1976, the Government of Bendel State purported to acquire the property for public purposes, to wit: office premises. Despite protests by the plaintiff against the acquisition, the Defendants held on to the property. At a point in time the Defendants offered to pay to the plaintiff N400,000.00 as compensation for the purported acquisition, which offer the plaintiff rejected. Then the plaintiff filed a writ. The claim was as follows:

“1. DECLARATION that the purported acquisition of all that piece or parcel of land situate along Benin/Sapele Road, Adjacent to Federal Prisons, Benin City in the Bendel State of Nigeria under the Bendel State Extraordinary Gazette No. 24 of 29th April, 1976 is unconstitutional, illegal, null, void and of no effect, on the grounds that:

(a) The purported acquisition was not for one of the purposes for which the land could be acquired.

(b) The purported re-entry and/or acquisition was not made bonafide but maliciously and for consideration other than the best interest of the Government of Bendel State.

(c) The purported acquisition and re-entry was persecutory and oppressive.

ALTERNATIVELY:

DECLARATION that the plaintiff is entitled to be paid fair and adequate compensation in accordance with the provisions of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

2. INJUNCTION restraining the Defendants and/or agents from using the said plaintiffs property unlawfully and against his will plus payment of N1,000,000.00 special and general damages for trespass to the property OR IN THE ALTERNATIVE.
3. ORDER of the Court that the plaintiff be paid the sum of N1,000,000.00 as compensation for the property.”

After hearing, the learned trial Judge, Moje Bare, J., in a well-considered judgment, made important findings of facts, namely:

(i) That the land upon which the plaintiff erected his house and which was purported to have been compulsorily acquired was State Land;

(ii) That the land was purportedly acquired, and so the cause of action accrued, on the 29th of April, 1976, before the Public Lands Acquisition (Miscellaneous Provisions) Decree, of 1976, was promulgated on the 20th of July, 1976;

(iii) That Public Lands Acquisition Law of Bendel State, Cap. 136, could not have been used to acquire what was already State land; and that once such a land has been leased to a person possession thereof can only be resumed by the State under section 17 of the Law or for one or the other of the limited purposes specified in section 24 of the Law (i.e. for purposes of making roads, railways, canals, tramways, and the like.