Lawyer Petitions Nigerian Army Over Alleged Threat by Brigadier General To Kill Elegushi, Other Lagos Landlords

A lawyer, M. A. Omotayo, has petitioned the Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen. Farouk Yahaya, to investigate Brig Gen Y.O Zubair of the Nigerian Army Signal Base, Apapa, Lagos State, for threatening the life of her client, Chief Elegushi Ifasegun over a landed property which the court had decided.
Omotayo said that despite various court judgements up to the Supreme Court which ruled in favour of Chief Elegushi Ifasegun and his family over the ownership of a land at Itedo, in the Eti Osa Local Government Area of Lagos State, one Toluwaleke Megba and his family members employed the services of the senior military officer who on Saturday, July 16, deployed soldiers who threatened to kill her client with a gun after brazenly trespassing on the property.

The petition dated July 20, 2022 and titled: “Assault, Harassment, Intimidation, Threat To Snuff Out Life With Military Riffles And The Use Of Nigeria Army Weapons/Equipment To Unleash Terror & Wrestle Land At Itedo, Lagos State And Abuse Of Office By Brigadier General Y.O Zubair Of Nigeria Army Signal Base Apapa Lagos State,” was copied to the Nigerian Army Headquarters, 81 Division, Corps Commander Nigerian Army Signal Corps, Executive Secretary, National Human High Commission, and the Lagos State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice.
The petition partly read, “We are Solicitors to Elegushi Royal Family & in particular Chief Elegushi Ifasegun, the Opemolua of Ikate Land, Elegushi Property Investment Company and Chief John Ogunyemi, the Baale of Itedo (herein after called “Our Client”) and on whose instruction we write to register Our Client’s protest and raise serious objection to use of Nigeria Army Signal Base/Authority, Apapa, Lagos State to unleash terror, assault, harass, intimidate assault, coerce Our Client in order to grab Our Client’s land at Itedo, in the Eti Osa Local Government Area of Lagos State irrespective of the fact that he has knowledge that there is JUDGEMENT in favour of Our Client by the LAGOS STATE HIGH COURT, where Brigadier General Y.O Subair’s Principal, Toluwaleke Megba and their family members known as Itedo community, declared trespassers on the land.
“Our Client, Elegushi Royal Family including Chief Elegushi Ifasegun and Elegushi Property Investment company are the owners of all land in the Ikate Elegushi Kingdom which includes Itedo, Gbara, Igbokushu, Iroko-Awe, Ilasan, Ologolo, Igbo Olube, Alajapa and Aro all in the Eti-Osa Local Government Area of Lagos State.
“The Ownership of the which has been stamped with the force of the law in different cases up to the Supreme in; Suit No. SC/29/75: CITY PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT LIMITED VS. AG LAGOS STATE, ONIKOYI CHIEFTAINCY FAMILY & 2 OTHERS delivered on the 30th day of January 1976 Suit No. CA/L/80/87 PRINCE OKANLAWON AJAIYI VS. MUTIU S. ELEGUSHI & ORS. Delivered on the 1st day of February 1989. Suit No. LD/1686/2005: CHIEF PATRICK IBIKUNLE FAFUNWA ONIKOYI & 3 ORS. V. A.G, LAGOS STATE AND OBA YEKINI ELEGUSHI & ORS delivered on the 10th day of July, 2006 SUIT NO. LD/2275/96 BETWEEN MOST REV. APST. ZEBULON HARRISON IKUEGBOWO & ORS. V. THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF LAGOS STATE & ORS (the suit which deals specifically with the land in this suit and between the same parties herein to mention a few.
“SUIT NO. LD/2275/96 BETWEEN MOST REV. APST. ZEBULON HARRISON IKUEGBOWO &ORS. V. THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF LAGOS STATE & ORS was instituted by Brigadier Subair’s Principal seeking to be declared owners of the land and other relieves sought. The Honorable Court in its judgement in delivered on the 29th day of November 2016 by Hon. Justice T.A.O Oyekan Abdullahi.
“Our Client were adjudged owners of Itedo land and village as against Brigadier Subair’s Principal and his family who were customary tenants of Our Client on the land including the shoreline.
“All sales by Subair’s Principal on Itedo land were declared NULL & VOID and possession of all land granted to Our Client. Subair’s Principal and their Privies including Subair were restrained perpetually by from committing further acts of trespass on the landPrince Toluwaleke Megba and others (Brigadier General Y.O Subair’s Principal) having lost in Court by judgment stated above filed a suit against Our Client at the Federal High Court before Honourable Justice M. S. Hassan of the Federal High Court, Lagos Judicial Division in suit FHC/L/CS/655/2017: PRINCE TOLUWALEKE MEGBA & LUCKY MEGBA OJONLA NIG LIMITED VS. NATIONAL INLAND WATERWAYS AUTHORITY (NIWA) & SIX OTHERS concerning a purported permit granted by National Inland Waterways and again lost dismissing the claim of Brigadier Subair’s Principal the Honorable Court in a well-considered ruling on the 23rd day of January, 2019 held that I have carefully examined the Statement of Claim and I do not see any legal nexus between the Plaintiffs and the 4th and 5th Defendants/ Applicants in this matter.”
“Irrespective of the above Judgements and Rulings Toluwaleke Megba and his family members employed the services of Brigadier General Y.O Subair as their land agent who on Saturday the 16th day of July, 2022 deployed the machinery of the Nigeria Army Signal base Apapa Lagos State who under the guise of having a piece of land at Itedo which has been trespassed upon came to the personal office of Chief John Ogunyemi at Yemi Car Wash, Off Admiralty Way, Itedo slapped the Chief who is the head of the village severally and commanded two of his men to beat up the Chief.
“These soldiers in obedience to Brigadier General Subair removed their uniform belts and beat Chief Ogunyemi mercilessly until the Brigadier General ordered them to stop when he realised the Chief was flat on the floor.
“While other soldiers who came with the Brigadier General pointed the rifles in readiness to kill anyone who would dare to come closer and or attempt to rescue the Chief from this indignity, and dehumanisation.
“The team of soldiers led by the Brigadier General Y.O Subair then proceeded to Chief Ifasegun Elegushi’s house at Opemolua Compound No 8, Oba Yekini Elegushi Street, Ikate Elegushi and in a commando manner jumped down from their pick up van, pointing their riffles unto the people including women and children as they enter the compound while everybody scampered for safety.
“Forcing their way into his office, Brigadier General Subair brought out his service pistol and threatened to blow-off Chief Ifasegun Elegushi’s head for daring to ask him for documents that gives authority to the Brigadier General that is higher than the judgements of Court. Banging the Chiefs office table severally despite being cautioned by the Chief to stop to no avail and threatening to kill the Chief and nothing would come out of it.
“He dared Our Client and their agents or privy to come unto Itedo land and be killed, that no judgment of Court can stand where he stands as a Brigadier General in the army.
“Our Clients were terrorized, oppressed, assaulted, humiliated, harassed, intimidated, their human rights abused by Nigeria soldiers as if they were at war.
“As such have become so disenchanted and worried that the machineries of the Nigeria Army could be deployed to terrorize Nigerian citizens for no just cause but to illegally help their cohorts wrestle land that has been adjudged to belong to our Client by Courts of competent jurisdiction.
“Sir, the succor we opine is in your power to intervene and investigate this matter and determine if the purpose for which the army is established is to terrorise, harass, intimidate Nigerians and grab land for an ally.
“If this is answered in negative, we pray the Nigeria Army to bring the culprits to book that sanity may return to Our Society.”