Saka Olugbode & Anor V. Abidoye Sangodeyi (1996)
LAWGLOBAL HUB Lead Judgment Report
BELGORE, J.S.C.
This appeal is in respect of a large expanse of land situate at Ajayi Orioke/Aderibigbe village along Iwo Road, Ibadan. The plaintiffs who are the appellants here and in the Court of Appeal had sued the defendant (representing himself and Ajayi Family of the same address) on the land in dispute claiming:-
“1. Forfeiture and recovery of possession of the land in dispute.
- Injunction restraining the defendant, his servants, agents and any person claiming through him from being or doing anything on the land in dispute.”
The land in dispute was the subject-matter of a suit before the Customary Court, Ibadan, in which the present respondent’s family were plaintiffs. The background of the claim leading to this appeal may be summarised as hereunder:-
“The plaintiffs (now appellants) assert that their ancestor, one Olowu, found the land and settled there during the time of Lagelu. Olowu died and his sons: Olugbode, Aderibigbe, Adeniji and Adegbite, the descendants of Olowu (headed by Olugbode family) continued to exercise maximum right of ownership over the land. This land now in dispute forms a little part of the Olowu’s land aforementioned. During his lifetime, Olugbode made a grant of the land to Bade and Tubosun families, who are still tenants of Olugbode family and their holdings form part of the disputed land’s boundaries. One Samuade, a maternal relation of Aderibigbe, one of the children of Olowu, brought to Aderibigbe one Ajayi, the ancestor of the defendant family for a customary grant of the land in dispute, entailing an annual homage in the payment of tribute or Ishakole made up of maize and yams. This customary tenancy never involved absolute ownership or title to Ajayi family but subject always to good conduct and payment of “Ishakole”. Though Aderibigbe founded a village on the disputed land originally called Aderibigbe village, but when Ajayi’s descendants became prominent on the land, the village is now commonly referred to as Aderibigbe/Ajayi Orioke village. Part of the land was acquired by the Ibadan District Council for building a teachers’ College in 1967 and the plaintiff’s family were compensated for the land whilst the Ajayi family were compensated for crops. In 1971, because some persons raised objection, in the Commissioner for Lands and Housing v Jimoh Fogebe suit 11232/1972, the plaintiffs were adjudged to be the rightful owners of a part of the land compulsorily acquired by the defunct Western State Government for television substation.”
Dispute surfaced on the disputed land when one Raufu Olatunji became the head of Ajayi family. He refused to pay “Ishakole” or to admit the over lordship of Olugbode family over the land. He went to court, representing himself and his family and made this claim over the land:-
“1. Plaintiffs’ claim (over the land) against the defendant (representing Olugbode family), declaration of the title to all that piece or parcel of land situate at Orioke village, Iwo Road Ibadan.
- An injunction to restrain the defendant, his agents, servants or privies from coming on the said land.”
He drew and tendered a plan to support his claim. He claimed ownership through one Osun that he purported to descend from. The case was at Grade A Customary Court, Ibadan and the claim was a total denial of the title of Olugbode family to the land. The appeal to the High Court of Western State in appeal No. 1130A/1968 was dismissed. There was a further appeal to the former Western State Court of Appeal (appeal No. CAW/35/l969) which was also dismissed. In appeal No. SC.286/1970 Supreme Court affirmed the decisions of the lower courts by dismissing the appeal of the plaintiff/appellant now respondent in this appeal. The crux of all the decisions in the courts below is that the Ajayi family were customary tenants of Olugbode family.
Remarkable enough, as the respondents pursued their claim as outright title holders or absolute owners of the land, with cases still pending either in the Customary Court or the Higher Courts of record, they kept on alienating parts of the land as absolute owners. Examples are:-
“That after challenging the right and ownership to the said land by the plaintiffs as landlord and after the judgments referred to above the defendants as tenants have purported to alienate substantially the whole of the said land to various people for building purposes as evidenced by:
(a) Deed of conveyance dated 7th April, 1967 and registered as No. 1 at Page 3 in Volume 992 of the Lands Registry at Ibadan;
(b) Deed of conveyance dated 7th April, 1967 and registered as No.3 at Page 3 in Volume 992 of the Lands Registry at Ibadan;
(c) Deed of conveyance dated 30th October, 1968 and registered as No. 15 at Page 15 in Volume 1101 of the Lands Registry at Ibadan;
(d) Deed of conveyance registered as No. 38 at Page 38 in Volume 1478 of the Lands Registry at lbadan;
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