Ikemefuna Achebe & Ors V. MR. Tobechukwu Achebe (2016)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report – COURT OF APPEAL

TOM SHAIBU YAKUBU, J.C.A. (Delivering the Leading Judgment)

This is a composite appeal against the judgment of the Anambra State High Court of justice, holden at Onitsha, delivered on 16th October, 2006. The 1st and 2nd appellants herein were the 1st and 5th defendants respectively, at the trial Court. Their own appeal is vide the extant amended notice and grounds of appeal dated and filed on 22nd June, 2015 but deemed by this Court as properly filed on 14th April, 2016. There are seven (07) grounds of appeal contained therein.

The 3rd appellant herein, who with leave of this Court sought and obtained, filed a separate notice and grounds of appeal against the same judgment aforesaid, was the 6th defendant at the trial Court. His notice and grounds of appeal dated 31st April, 2010 and filed on 7th December, 2010, was deemed as properly filed by this Court on 24th November, 2010. It contains three (3) grounds of appeal.

The suit was commenced on the 20th day of December, 2004 by the respondent herein as plaintiff against the appellants and the rest of the defendants. The appellants, the respondent and the other defendants are

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all surviving sons of late Dominic Okechukwu Achebe.

The respondent’s case is that his late father Dominic Okechukwu who was an only son married his mother Agnes Achebe (nee Amobi) under the Act and the marriage was blessed with eleven children of which among the first seven children only one, the 4th child, was a boy. This circumstance [for which at the time the wife i.e mother of the respondent was blamed) greatly agitated the couple.

Sometime in 1936, late Dominic Achede acquired by purchase a piece of land from Joseph Anara Ekwerekwu (acting for himself and on behalf of Umuokposieke family of Onitsha for the sum of ??5 (five pounds). Later in 1938 he through the same Umuokposieke family of Onitsha purchased a little additional piece of land contiguous to the initial piece for the sum of 2 [two pounds). The various sums paid for the hitherto two pieces of land were evidenced in writing and the document was tendered at the trial as Exhibit P1. Both lands eventually became one land.

The fact, as mentioned above that, out of the 7 children then begat by the couple that only one was a boy was a cause of concern for the couple particularly

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considering the fact that the respondent’s father was an only son. This was the position when the birth of the respondent in 1939 as the 8th child but only the 2nd male child brought tremendous joy to the family particularly the mother of the respondent.

It was in expression of the joy and the natural love for the child i.e. the respondent that the respondent’s mother gave the sum of N10 (ten pounds) to the husband (i.e. the respondent’s father) with which yet another portion of land adjacent to the ones earlier purchased was acquired for the respondent from the same Joseph Anara Ekwerekwu (acting on behalf of himself and Umuokposieke family of Onitsha in 1939). The payment of the said sum of 10 (ten pounds) for the land was duly evidenced in writing and the document admitted in evidence as Exhibit P2.

These three pieces of land i.e. the portions acquired by the father of the parties for the total sum of N7 (seven pounds) and the portion acquired for the plaintiff in 1939 for the sum of ??10 (ten pounds) became merged together and constitute the property presently known as No. 13 O’Connor Street, Onitsha, which is the land in dispute.

On the