Alhaji Musa Wali V. Suleiman Wakilin Ibrahim (1996)

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OKUNOLA, J.C.A. 

This is an appeal against the judgment of the Kano State Sharia Court of Appeal holden in Kano delivered on 4/10/91.

The facts of this case which has been laid out by the Sharia Court of Appeal judgment on appeal is briefly put as follows:

This suit originated from the Upper Area Court No.2 Gyadi-Gyadi, Kano in a suit number 10/86 dated the 3rd day of March, 1986 where the plaintiff, Sulaiman, standing on behalf of Ibrahim Wudil sought for the inheritance of the late M. Sirake, which they succeeded and which included a house situate at No. 106, Sani Mainagga. He said he was suing Isyaku and 6 others. He stated that Sirake was a cousin to his father Ibrahim as they shared the same grand father. In other words Ibrahim, the plaintiff and Sirake were first cousins. They have same grand father, Adamu while the defendants, Isyaku and his brothers are grand children to Sirake’s brother, called Salihu. After the trial, the court entered judgment in favour of and awarded the estate to the grand children of the deceased, i.e. Isyaku and not to the first cousin, who is Ibrahim. Dissatisfied with this decision the plaintiff appealed to the Sharia Court of Appeal, Kano and later to the Court of Appeal Kaduna. The Court of Appeal quashed the decision of the Sharia Court of Appeal and affirmed that of the trial upper Area Court, and made an order to the Sharia Court of Appeal, Kano to rehear the suit, but by a different panel- suit No. CA/K/1425/86 dated the 9th day of February, 1988. In compliance with this order, the court, presided over by a new panel of Kadis reheard the appeal. After listening to the parties and going through the records the Sharia Court of Appeal reversed the decision and awarded the estate to Ibrahim who is on the same level (with Sirake, the deceased on the matter of succession. The court has therefore returned the succession in dispute to Sulaiman Ibrahim, the plaintiff.

At this juncture, it is necessary to observe that even before the quashing of the decision of the lower court, the defendants have already sold the house given to them by the court, house No. 106, Sani Mainagge to one Alhaji Inuwa Sulaiman at a price of N3,600.00 who in turn sold the house to Alhaji Musa Wali at a price of N4,500.00. With the new decision of the Sharia Court of Appeal the house, subject of succession, has left the hands of the defendants, Isyaku and others to the hands of Ibrahim Sulaiman’ s father. For this reason the court laid some conditions that could put the house into the plaintiff’s hands without causing harm to the people who bought the house, i.e Alhaji Inuwa Sulaiman the respondent herein and Alhaji Musa Wali, the appellant herein. These conditions were as follows:

(a) That the defendants, Isyaku and others will return the money they sold the house at N3,600.00

(b) That the first buyer of the house i.e Alhaji Inuwa Sulaiman who in turn sold it to Alhaji Musa will return the profit he made on selling the house i.e N900.00

(c) That the remaining matter will then be between the plaintiff, Ibrahim to whom the court has given the house and the last buyer of the house at a price of N4,500.00. In whose hands the house is i.e Alhaji Musa Wali.

(d) A choice will be given to the plaintiff, Ibrahim or his representative, to either take the house and pay to the last buyer of the house i.e. Alhaji Musa Wali, difference between the value of the house at the time when Alhaji Musa bought it i.e N4,600.00 and the value as at the time of judgment, what ever the value was.

(e) And if the balance is collected what ever amount it might be, it should be summed up with the other (N3,600.00) and the N900.00 totalling N4,500.00 which is the amount Alhaji Musa Wali bought the house from Alhaji Inuwa Sumaila.

If all these amounts summed up, what ever it totals to, that would be the entitlement of Alhaji Musa Wali, then he had to quit from the house and hand same to the legal owner, who is Ibrahim or his son Sulaiman.

(f) But if Ibrahim or Sulaiman, the plaintiff said he prefers the money, then he would be given the N4,500.00 only.

So, it was based on this that the plaintiff/respondent in this court, Sulaiman chose to take the house, and that was the reason why the Sharia court of Appeal ordered the Upper Area Court No.2 Gyadi-Gyadi (hereinafter referred to as the UAC) to execute their decision based on the choice of the plaintiff/respondent, Sulaiman standing for Ibrahim by taking the house and paying the balance of the difference between the first valuation of the house and the second to Alhaji Musa Wali the appellant who now possesses the house. The executing court after a long delay, went into action. After the executing court completed its investigation in a suit No. K/421/87 dated the 10th day of December, 1987, it ordered Alhaji Musa Wali to take his money and quit the house. This order was given on the 23rd day of June, 1989. Dissatisfied with this order of the UAC, Alhaji Musa Wali appealed to the High Court of Justice, Kano on the 3rd day of July, 1989 from where the appeal was transferred to the Sharia Court of Appeal, Kano on the 25th day of June, 199. The Sharia Court of Appeal shall hereafter be called SCA.

On receipt of this appeal, the SCA went through its earlier judgment leading to the remittance of the case to the UAC for the execution of its said judgment which culminated in the order of the UAC now appealed against. The SCA also went through the grounds of appeal lodged by the appellant herein to the court which were framed thus: