Respite for Trademore Estate Abuja residents as court stops demolition

By Ihesiulo Grace 13 July 2023 105 No comment

BY ANDREW OROLUA

Reprieve from scare of demolition of buildings came for beleaguered residents of Trademore Estate, Lugbe, Abuja, yesterday as a Federal Capital Territory (FCT), High Court sitting in Jikwoyi district, Abuja, stopped the Federal Government (FG), Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) and their agents from demolishing the Estate.

A!ready,before now, following heavy flooding which this year —-and some years in the past– claimed lives at the popular estate, FCDA had rolled out bulldozers and pulled down buildings, deeming them illegal with the claim they such were constructed on waterways against the provisions of Abuja Masterplan.

The Masterplan is a document that clearly designates what structures should be constructed in different parts of the nation’s capital, violation of which is often met with demolition.

Many demolition exercises had,over the years, been carried out and are still being executed –in Abuja,leaving affected residents in tears, sorrow,frustration and other extreme emotions.

Not a few are known to have died in these circumstances.

Yesterday’s court order was sequel to an ex parte application filed by Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN) on behalf of Trademore Estate, but argued by Benson Igbanoi.

The application followed a suit filed by Trademore against some FG functionaries and agencies including Minister of FCT, FCDA, Abuja Metropolitan Management Council ( AMMC ) and the Abuja Municipal Area Council ( AMAC ) who had issued threats to further demolish Trademore Estate over issues concerning flooding of the estate.

Justice Zubairu Mohammed granted Trademore International Holding Nigeria Ltd (developers of Trademore Estate) an order for maintenance of status quo and an interim injunction restraining all the FG’s defendants and their employees, agents, officials,privies.

The order also covers “all those purporting to be acting for them or deriving title from them,and any other persons howsoever and whomsoever called,from trespassing, or further trespassing on,demolishing or further demolishing Trademore Estate, known as Plot 1981, Sabon Lugbe, Abuja.”

The judge specifically ruled as follows:
“The application Ex-parte dated and filled 7 july, 2023 is hereby granted as prayed to wit: restraining the Defendants, whether by themselves, agents, employees. officials, privies, and all those purporting to be acting for them or to have derived title from them or other persons howsoever and whomsoever called from trespassing on or further trespassing on, demolishing. or further demolition of all that Trademore Estate, Lugbe, Abuja. Known as Plot 1981, Sabon Lugbe, Abuja, and other appurtenances thereof at Lugbe, Abuja, with the buildings and appurtenances thereon, or from evicting the occupants of the said property from it or in any way interfering with the Plaintiff’s exclusive.”

He also specifically granted the second prayer asked for,to wit, that “all parties maintain status quo,while the Motion on Notice and Writ of Summons be served on the Defendants forthwith.”

Trademore Estate, in its writ of summons, asked the court to restrain the Minister of FCT, the FCDA, AMMC and AMAC from demolishing the estate with the buildings and appurtenances thereon; or evicting the occupants from the said Trademore Estate.

The plaintiffs also asked the court to restrain all the defendants “from trespassing on in any manner howsoever, into the Trademore Estate, Lugbe,Abuja; or from carrying out any further or fresh demolition exercise of any structures or buildings in the said estate; or in anyway interfering with the plaintiff’s exclusive right of ownership and possession of the said property.”

Trademore Holding, in the main suit, complained to the court about earlier illegal,wanton and unconscionable demolition of buildings belonging to innocent occupants in the estate by agents of the defendants.

Plaintiffs claimed that it was manifestly clear that the three floodings ever experienced in the estate since it was built in 2007,were all caused,not by the plaintiff or occupants of the estate, but by acts of gross negligence occasioned by the defendants; or through outright inaction by agents of the Federal Government, by refusing to implement any of the anti-flooding measures jointly devised and agreed upon at various meetings and through several correspondences by representatives of the FG and Trademore Holding International Ltd (owners of the Trademore Estate).

The plaintiff argued,amongst others, that if the defendants, through the Ecological Fund, had not built a very narrow canal instead of a huge bridge to allow free passage of water coming from a now broken down and disused dam that runs through several adjoining settlements, coupled with several unstrained excavatory acts of other developers in the area, there would have been no incidence of flooding in the estate.

Trademore Holding therefore sought from the court an order of status quo and also an ex parte order of interim injunction restraining all the defendants,or their agents, servants, employees.

The Judge, after the ruling, adjourned the motion on notice for hearing to September 22, 2023.