J. O. Anakwenze V. Louis Aneke & Ors.(1985)

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L. UWAIS, J.S.C.

This is an appeal from the ruling and order given by the Court of Appeal at Enugu on 20th September, 1982 by which the appellant – a legal practitioner – was sentenced to 6 months imprisonment for being found guilty of committing contempt of Court.

The facts which led to the contempt are as follows: By a public notice published on 25th January 1973, in East Central State Gazette No.4 Volume 4, the former East Central State of Nigeria acquired, for public use, a parcel of land at Emene.

Sometime later the sum of N658,000.00 as compensation payable to the owners of the land acquired was paid into the High Court at Enugu by the Government of Anambra State. On 7th June, 1978 the appellant took out a summons under the Public Lands Acquisition Law, Cap. 105 laws of Eastern Nigeria, 1963 on behalf of his clients, namely (1) Joseph Ede (2) Bernard Mba, (3) Vincent Aluma and (4) Geoffrey Nnaji who were suing as plaintiffs on behalf of the people of Amaechi Village of Emene Nike.

The summons sought for the payment of the compensation paid into the High Court to the appellant’s clients. Meanwhile, pending the determination of the issues raised by the summons, the plaintiffs applied to the High Court (Araka, C.J.) for the release of half of the compensation paid into Court in order, it was said, to alleviate their sufferings as a result of the acquisition. In granting the application in part, the learned Chief Judge made the following ruling:

“I will make an order for one third of the amount paid into court to be paid out to the applicants. But the applicants are to file an affidavit in support of the application before the amount is paid out to them. Further consideration of the issues involved in this application will be adjourned to 24/7/78. By this time the survey should have been completed and the actual amount of compensation to be paid for the area acquired less the area edged yellow shall have been worked out and the parties interested in the remaining area acquired shall have been known too.”

After one-third of the compensation was paid to the appellant personally, who was acting on behalf of the plaintiffs, two other communities namely of Emene and Umuchigbo Iji-Nike applied to the High Court to be joined in the action as interested parties and also asked for the discharge of the order of payment of one-third of the compensation to the plaintiffs. The latter part of the application was based on the ground that the land acquired by the Government belonged, in common, to all the three communities of Amaechi, Emene and Umuchigbo Iji-Nike, and that by virtue of the provisions of sections 15 and 18 of the Public Lands Acquisition (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1976 (1976 No. 33) it was the Land Tribunal established under the Act that had jurisdiction in the matter. The original jurisdiction of the High Court having been ousted by section 18 of the Act.

The learned Chief judge upheld the submission that he had no jurisdiction in the matter and struck out the suit; but refused to discharge the order of payment of one-third of the compensation to the plaintiffs for the following reasons –

“A different consideration could have arisen if the contention of Umuchigbo Iji-Nike and Emene people was that Amaechi people are complete strangers on the land. In that case, the Court could have had no hesitation in ordering the Amaechi people to pay back to the Sub-Treasury the amount wrongly paid out to them.

But when the issue is as to the exact amount to be paid to the parties I do not see the necessity of canceling the order for interim award to the Amaechi people. If on the ultimate conclusion of the hearing it is found that the people of Amaechi had been over-paid then they could be called upon to refund the excess payment. If they were under-paid they should be paid the difference.

The order for the interim payment was made so as to alleviate the sufferings of Amaechi people (as stated by their counsel) who were made to vacate their houses because of the Acquisition Notice. The suffering of the people, no doubt, would be worsened if another order is now made canceling the order for interim payment.”

Aggrieved by the ruling, both the people of Amaechi and the community of Emene separately appealed to the Federal Court of Appeal (now simply Court of Appeal). The Court determined both appeals as follows:

“In the final analysis the appeal by the Amaechi Village fails and it is dismissed.

The appeal by the Emene Community succeeds and the following orders are made: