Magodo Land Dispute: Supreme Court rejects Lagos application for judgment review

The Supreme Court has declined to hear an application by the Lagos State Government seeking for a review of the 12-year-old judgment on the land dispute in Magodo,which ordered that 549 plots of land be given to the aggrieved landlords in the estate.

The court urged the counsel to the state government and that of the Shangisha Landlords Association, to amicably resolve the 38-year-old dispute, insisting that it has no powers to review its judgments.

The Justice Iyang Okoro-led five-man panel directed the counsel to both parties to call for a meeting between their clients and arrive at a resolution on the proper terms of settlement, after they must have studied the court’s final judgment.

The panel however advised that aggrieved individuals after the settlement could seek justice and file their suits at the High Court.

Representing the judgment creditors, the Shangisha Landlords Association at the proceeding were Adenrele Adegborioye and Abdulateef Afolabi of BA LAW LLP.

Mr Olumuyiwa Akinboro (SAN), represented the Judgement Debtors/Applicants, Lagos State Government, while Olumide Sofowora (SAN) and Deji Fasusi, represented the respondents (other landlords).

In compliance with the court’s directive, counsel to the parties withdrew their applications and the court thereafter struck out the suit.

Reacting to the development, Special Adviser to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Media and Publicity, Gboyega Akosile, told Peoples Gazette that the state government would abide by the court pronouncement and amicably resolve the matter with the aggrieved parties.

“In the coming days and months, the government will be meeting with all the aggrieved parties and some resolutions pronounced by the court will be put on the front burner and everybody will be fine at the end of the day. All of us will come together on a roundtable, we’ll look at what the issues are, and what are the options available to us and you can be assured that we’ll have an amicable agreement at the end of the day.

“Government will do what is just and what is right. We’ll go back to the drawing board and the governor, in his characteristic manner, will fashion out a peaceful resolution that will be acceptable and agreeable to all parties concerned, even if it means setting up a committee to look into it and meeting with everybody,” he said.