Justice Abiodun Adewara, of a Kwara State High Court in Ilorin has threatened to strike out ownership of the controversial “Ile-Arugbo” case between the Saraki family and Kwara state government.
The judge gave the ruling over persistent absence of Saraki family counsel being the claimant in the trial to appear in court to fully prosecute its case.
Justice Adewara awarded a penalty of N200,000 each in favour of all the four defendants (Kwara State Governor, Attorney General, House of Assembly, and Bureau of Lands) and another N50,000 to the police on account of the failure of the claimant to allow the case to proceed on various occasions.
After many adjournments at the instance of the claimant, Akin Onigbinde had on July 8th agreed to an adjournment for July 22nd but he later said he could not make the sitting.
When the matter came up for hearing yesterday, Onigbinde, had again sent a letter, accompanied with a medical report, saying he was advised to undergo bed rest between 3rd and 10th of August, 2020.
Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in Kwara State, Salman Jawondo, who appeared for the government said the claimant was deliberately wasting the time of the court and urged the Judge to dismiss the case for lack of diligent prosecution.
He also requested for the sum of N250,000 penalty each against the claimant and in favour of the defendants.
Jawondo, who insisted that Asa Limited was just buying time with the numerous adjournments, wondered why other counsel to the claimant cannot continue with the case in the absence of Onigbinde.
The Police, which is the fifth defendant in the case, aligned with the government’s position that the case should be struck out.
Justice Abiodun Adebara, however, adjourned the matter to 23rd and 24th of September to allow the claimant’s counsel to continue the case, warning that he would not grant any other adjournment after this.
The “Ile-Arugbo” owned by the late Kwara State political leader, Dr Abubakar Olusola Saraki, became controversial and object of litigation December 2019 when the Kwara State government demolished the existing bungalow building on it with a view to construct a phase of government secretariat on it.
While the Sarakis opposed the action, the Kwara State Government claimed that the Saraki family did not pay and buy the controversial land from Kwara State government.
The Asa Investment Limited, which is purportedly owned by the late Olusola Saraki, had taken the Kwara State Government to court after the latter reclaimed the land which it said was unlawfully taken over by the firm without any right of occupancy or payment to the owner, the state government.
