Nzekwu & Anor v. Attorney-General E.C.State & Anor. (1972)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report

FATAYI-WILLIAMS, J.S.C. 

By a Notice published in the Eastern Region of Nigeria Gazette No.5 of 21st January, 1960, as Eastern Regional Notice No. 60 (exhibit G) the Government of the then Eastern Region of Nigeria gave notice of its intention to acquire 796.8 acres of land at Onitsha in the Onitsha Province of the Eastern Region of Nigeria for public purposes. By another Gazette Notice published as Eastern Nigeria Notice No. 287 in Eastern Nigeria Gazette No. 18 of 22nd March, 1962 (exhibit G1) the acreage required was amended to read 773.47 acres made up of two parcels of land; parcel A contained an area of 739.3 acres while parcel B contained an area of 34.17 acres.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Town Planning of the then Eastern Region of Nigeria had applied for and obtained on 22nd June, 1961, a certificate of title (exhibit W) in respect of the 773.47 acres. The certificate of title contains the plans of the two parcels of land.

Pursuant to the notice of acquisition the plaintiffs, as claimants, applied by originating summons to the Onitsha High Court on 14th December, 1962, for the determination of the persons entitled to the lands covered by the said notice and of the amount of compensation payable therefore. The Attorney-General of Eastern Nigeria who was on notice was subsequently made the defendant to the said application. On 9th January, 1963, Anachuna Nwakoli, Ikefuna Onwugbobi, and Jebez Nwangwu, all representing the people of Obosi who also claimed the land, applied to be joined and were duly joined as defendants by order of court on 14th January, 1963. Pleadings were thereupon ordered and were duly filed. In their statement of claim the plaintiffs claimed that they were entitled to the land. They also claimed the sums of 3,127,093:15:0pounds as compensation for the land and 211,500:0:0pounds for the buildings on the land.

Before the defendants had filed their statement of defence, the learned trial judge on 1st July, 1963 adjourned the proceedings sine die until the determination of the appeals concerning the ownership and possession of the acquired land then pending before the Privy Council in England.

The people of Obosi, however, appeared to have dropped out of the case when the Privy Council in the judgment in P.C. Appeal No. 29 of 1962 delivered on 15th June, 1964 (exhibit D2) awarded possession of the land then in dispute, which included the parcels of land for which compensation was being claimed, to the present claimants. Therefore, when the hearing of the case commenced on 16th November, 1965, they neither appeared nor were they represented by counsel. At the hearing that day, however, the Minister of Town Planning of the then Eastern Nigeria was joined as defendant.

In their statement of defence, the 1st defendant, i.e. the Attorney-General, averred that the Government had offered the plaintiffs 310 per acre per annum capitalised at 20 years.”

In view of the basis of the awards made by the learned trial judge and the reasons for making them, we shall set out the evidence adduced at the trial with respect to the value of both land and buildings in detail.

One Josephus Theophilus John (2nd P/W.), a licenced surveyor of about 46 years experience at the material time, gave evidence for the claimants. He claimed to be a valuer in addition to being a licenced surveyor. He was well acquainted with Onitsha and knew the actual land in dispute. His testimony as to the value of the land is as follows:-

“There are 397.09 acres on the land. I would divide them thus for purposes of development:-

200 acres for industrial and commercial purposes.

100 acres for residential purposes.

97.09 for open spaces, roads, drains and fields.

The permanent buildings on the land could easily fall into this scheme with 100 acres for residential purposes. The land is very near the urban area of Onitsha and will be the connecting link between Onitsha and Asaba. At the time I did the survey in 1960 the Total Oil Company was there and so also the Shell Company had land there.