The Oyo State High Court sitting in Ibadan has fixed July 1 to rule on an application seeking to restrain the Oyo State Govermment from taking over Assets Filling Station’s land in Ojo’o area of Ibadan.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the filling station had sued the Oyo State Govermment, the state Attorney-General and the Commissioner for Justice over the notice of acquisition of its land.
Other repondent is the Oyo State Commissioner for Land and Urban Development.
The claimant’s counsel, Niyi Akintola (SAN), prayed the court to restrain the respondents from taking over the land, adding that the government had gone to remove the roof of the filling station.
Akintola also prayed the court to retrain the Oyo State Govermment and its agents from taking further steps on the land, saying, his client got approval and the Certificate of Occupancy for the construction of the filling station.
The claimant’s counsel sald that the land in question belongs to the Federal Government that allocated it to his client in 2017 to build a filling station.
“The Federal Government (FG) approved, and gave the Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) to my client.
” My client also got approvals from the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) and the state Ministry of Land and from the state’s Town Planning Authority.
“The Supreme Court decision is that the state government does not have right on Federal Govermment’s land.
” The Land Use Act is clear as it says that the land in the state is vested on the state government with the exemption of the federal land and its agencies.
” All lands vested on the FG and its agencies are not within the jurisdiction of the state government,” Akintola said.
The claimant’s counsel said that no state government had the right to revoke any land that was not vested on it.
He said that the argument of the respondents that the government of former Gov. Abiola Ajimobi gave out the land illegally and on political consideration cannot stand because government is continuum.
In his response, the Counsel to the respondents, I. O. Tijani, said that the matter was not about ownership but on Planning and Environmental Law of Oyo State.
According to Tijani, the state government has the right to legislate on Environmental Law and not the Federal Government.
He said that the filling station was constructed on the setback of the road.
He added, that had been brought to the notice of the claimant since March 26, 2016 that he should not construct anything on the land.
Tijani said that the claimant went through illegal means, got the approval and started building the filling station despite the warning not to do so.
Justice Segun Olagunju after hearing the arguments of the parties, adjourned the matter until July 1 for ruling on the application. (NAN)
