Chief A. C. Nwabude & Anor V. Augustine Ugodu & Ors. (2011)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report – COURT OF APPEAL

ABDU ABOKI, J.C.A. (Delivering the Leading Judgment)

This is an appeal against the decision of C. E. K. Anigbogu J. of the Anambra State High Court of Justice, Onitsha delivered on 27th March 2006.

The brief facts of the case are as follows:-

The Plaintiffs are members of Umu-Utumacha Family in Umu-Nweshi of Isiowulu Community Obosi, while the 1st Defendant is from Ire Village in Ire Obosi. The 2nd Defendant is a company incorporated in Nigeria. The Plaintiff claimed that the land in dispute forms part of a larger expanse of land known as “Omoko Land” situate at Obosi but the Defendants said the land is called “Ozalla land” and that it is delineated by a Survey Plan No.AA/D.30/2000.

Both parties derived their root of title to the land in dispute under native law and customs of Obosi known as “Igbota-ani”. By this custom, whoever came into a virgin forest clears and cultivated it automatically becomes the owner and its ownership devolves unto his descendants from generation to generation.

The Plaintiffs claimed that as descendants of a common ancestor called TUMATCHA, they are the bonafide owners of the land in dispute called “Omoko Land” and that they have been exercising maximum and unchallenged acts of ownership and possession over the land by inter alia farming, and cultivating and letting same to several farmers on terms who cultivate thereon.

The Defendants claimed that it was the ancestor of the 1st Defendant called Udezuga who first settled and deforested the land called Ozalla land Obosi, part of which is now in dispute. He was said to have farmed the land and carried out other maximum acts of ownership and possession on the said land unhindered.

The Plaintiffs claimed that no member of Ire Family owns land around the area in dispute except by purchase or grant from a member of Isiowulu Community. They claimed that Obosi Master Plan No.ECAS/7/82 demarcates the boundary of Isiowulu and Ime Obosi.

The 1st Defendant claimed that his ancestor Udezuga shared his estate amongst his four sons and that two of the sons Odogwu-Ezuga and Oliobi got separate portion among other lands in the area encompassing the Ozalla land Obosi. He said that the Ozalla land inherited by Nwabude shares a common boundary with the land of Umuachusim Family (descendants of Oliobi). He said that the Umuachusim Family also called their own portion of land Ozalla land. He further said that the land in dispute forms part of the Ozalla land inherited by Odugwu-Ezuga whose share devolved unto Nwabude.

The 1st Defendant said that the Nwabude family of Ire Village Obosi consigned large track of the said Ozalla land to him under the native law and custom of Obosi people.

After the grant to him by his family the 1st Defendant said he immediately commenced exercising unbroken maximum acts of ownership and possession over the Nwabude’s portion or Ozalla land by farming, alienating and leasing it till 1986.

The 1st Defendant alleged that when Umuachusim boundary of their Ozalla land was encroaching into the Ozalla land of the 1st Defendant, the representatives of Umuachusim family of Oliobi and the 1st Defendant of Umu-Obanaka Family worked out modalities for the management and administration of the Ozalla land by merging the two separate portions of land belonging to the 1st Defendant on the one hand and that of the Umuachusim Family of Oliobi on the other hand. The two families together exercised various acts of ownership and possession on the portion of land merged until 1987.

The 1st Defendant claimed that in 1987 the 2nd Defendant approached him as its Chairman/Managing Director and the Umuachusim Family for a grant of part of the Ozalla land for construction of Anambra State Branch of Food Processing and Preservation Industry. The 2nd Defendant paid N1 million naira (N1,000,000.00) to the land owners for a lease of 99 years.

The company was said to have been put into possession of the Ozalla land part of which is in dispute and a lease agreement was executed by the parties.