Demolition: Court orders Kano Gov’t to pay N8.5bn damages
A Kano State high court has ordered Kano State Government to pay N8.511 billion to Lamash Properties Limited for the illegal demolition of the company’s building in Kano.
The court also ordered the state government, Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf and the state Attorney General, who were the defendants in the case, to pay additional N10 million as the cost of filing the case.
The buildings was demolished on the order of the governor in June 2023, and the company filed the suit challenging the “unwarranted” action.
In an originating summon filed before the court presided by Justice Sunusi Ma’aji, the plaintiff said it obtained the property legally via an agreement with the state government under the administration of former Governor Abdullahi Ganduje.
Lamash, through its counsel, Nureini Jimoh, SAN, sought a declaration that the agreement signed with the Kano State Government to develop the site for some profitable purposes was valid, subsisting and enforceable when Governor Yusuf decided to demolish the property.
The defendants, represented by Ibrahim Wangida and Bashir Muhammad, had filed a Memorandum of Conditional Appearance in the matter, according to court records.
While delivering his judgement on Wednesday, Justice Ma’aji granted the reliefs sought by the plaintiff, agreeing that the plaintiff had an enforceable contract.
He faulted the demolition and ordered that since the building could not be restored, its present monetary value should be paid to the plaintiff.
Wangida, however, faulted the judgment, saying the defendants had in addition to the Memorandum of Conditional Appearance, “filed a preliminary objection and a date was given for us to move our motion but the judge did not sit on the appointed date.
“Now, when the court fixed another date, a Hearing Notice was not served on us. It was neither served on me nor on Bashir Mohammed at our respective offices. They are claiming to have served it on Abdulkarim Maude, at No 63, Lamido Road.
“First, Maude has never been part of the case, and secondly, he said he was not even aware of the said service at his office. That is very strange.”
Wandiga said because they were not served with a Hearing Notice, they were not aware of the date and were not in court.
According to him, the plaintiff applied for “our preliminary objection to be dismissed and the court obliged. They also moved their own motion.
“And today, we were in court to apply that the last sitting of the court be set aside, but the judge insisted he was in court to deliver his judgement.”
According to him, they have filed a motion praying the court to set aside the judgement.
It could be recalled that in September 2023, a Federal High Court sitting in Kano had in a separate suit, ordered the government to pay N30 billion in damages for the demolition of structures at Kofar Mata Eid Ground.
This also followed the demolition exercise carried out on Saturday, June 3, 2023, supervised by the governor few days after he was sworn in.
