A Federal High Court sitting in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State capital, on Thursday, fixed March 12, 2020, to rule on the matter brought before it by three host communities against the State Government where the construction of the Ebonyi Airport project is sited.

Six persons, namely, Mr. Nwantiti Christopher, Oken Stephen, Chukwu Celestine, Igwe Sunday, Igwe Emeka and Nwafor Tochukwu, had in a suit No. FHC/CS/82/2019, sued Ebonyi State Government, on behalf of themselves and the three communities comprising Okeleru, Umuezoka, and Umuogharu, alleging forceful takeover of their ancestral homes for construction of the airport.

They had prayed the court to compel Ebonyi State Government to pay them N2bn damages, for illegally and forcefully ejecting them from their ancestral homes, destroying their residential houses and economic trees, without compensations.

They also prayed the court to make an order stopping the construction of the airport, in the alternative.

During the adoption of the written addresses on Thursday, the defendant’s Lead Counsel, Barr. Roy O. Nweze, urged the court to dismiss the case for lacking in merit.

Barr. Nweze told the Court that the plaintiff were more than one person and in consequence for being more than one, in the eye of the law, the action was incompetent.

He further argued that the court had no jurisdiction to entertain the matter in the first instance.

“Section 251 of the Constitution of Nigeria as amended is very explicit in such matters considering that none of the parties is a federal agency. Neither the plaintiff or the respondent is a federal agency and considering that the matter bothers on land which this court has no jurisdiction to handle, l therefore, urge the court to graciously dismiss the matter.”

However, Barr. Gerald Abonyi, the Lead Counsel to the plaintiff, said the action is competent, because it was explicitly captured in the human rights fundamental procedure rules.

He argued that the subject matter which bothers on breach of the fundamental rights of the applicants was what conferred the court jurisdiction to hear it.

Barr. Abonyi further argued that Section 28 and 29 of the Land Act provided procedures and conditions for acquisition of public land, adding that the case in question had nothing to do with buying and selling of land.

Abonyi noted that the forceful acquisition of the applicants’ land, destruction of their residential buildings and economic trees there-in without compensations was illegal and the court should hold so.

The presiding Judge, Justice Phoebe Ayua, adjourned the matter for ruling on March 12.

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