Court Rejects Joinder Motion Of Firm In Lagos Property Suit

Justice Othman Musa of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has turned down a request by a firm, EOD Lagos PFM Limited to be joined as a party in a Lagos property dispute pending before the court.

The firm has been adversely affected by the order of the FCT High Court sealing up the premises, at Plot No A Block 12, Lekki Peninsula Scheme, Lagos State, where it carries out its business activities.

Officials of the court sealed up a property located at Lekki Peninsula Scheme, Lagos, following an exparte order granted by Justice Musa.

The sealed property houses various business entities including Angelos, Café, Zevis, Pharmaceuticals, EOD PFM Ltd, Lord of Hosts Miracle Church, who have been carrying on their various businesses in the premises for several years.

Following the Exparte Order granted by court to seal up the property, the firm applied to be joined in the suit pending before the FCT High Court with Suit No. FCT/HC/CV/4636/2025 between Mr. Henry Orabuchi V Police and Others but the court turned down the application.

Upon hearing the application for joinder vide Motion No. M/402/2026, the Court on February 19, delivered a ruling refusing to join the interested party in the suit or vary the Order to exclude the area where their business is located.

In its motion, EOD PFM Ltd had prayed the court to be joined or vary the order of the court to exclude the area where its business premises in the property is located but the court dismissed the motion.

Also, the court awarded a punitive damage of N500,000.00 against the party for bringing the motion before the court.

The court was not swayed by the facts showing that the tenant that brought the motion for joinder operates its business on a piece of land that is clearly distinct from the portion of the reclaimed land claimed by the plaintiff or the fact that the affected tenant had been out of business since the Lagos property was sealed up in December, 2025 in line with the Exparte Order of the FCT High Court.

In refusing the application, the Court held that the company did not file a ‘statement of defence’ in the suit even where the Affidavit demonstrated the company’s interest in the property and how the Exparte Order has affected their business.

The award of cost of N500,000.00 against an innocent tenant whose business premises has been sealed up by the Exparte Order of Court granted without jurisdiction, does not serve the interest of justice in any way.

The Hon. Court has no jurisdiction to grant the Exparte Order and has not demonstrated any inclination to equity and fairness in discharge of judicial duty.

The plaintiff had alleged that his fundamental Rights as guaranteed under Sections 34, 35, 36, 37, 41, and 44 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), and Articles 9 and 14 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act, have been breached.

He claimed that he purchased 3,000 square meters of reclaimed land situated at the back of Plot No A Block 12, Lekki Peninsula Scheme, Lagos State from the Landlord, Mr. Emecheta Elvis Eze, which has nothing to do with the premises where the business entities are located.

The plaintiff filed the suit to shield him from honouring invitation of the Nigeria Police Force, following a Petition against him by Prof. Mike Ozekhome, SAN, (lawyer to Mr. Emecheta) over Mr.

Henry’s conduct that amounts to criminal trespass, damage to property and threat to life.

In the fundamental Rights suit filed by the law office of Chikaosolu Ojukwu, SAN, on behalf of the plaintiff, it was argued that the Police Invitation infringes on his fundamental Rights and is aimed at compelling him into relinquishing his lawful proprietary and contractual rights over the 3,000square meters of reclaimed land behind the sealed up property.

In his Exparte application before the Court, Ojukwu urged the Court to grant an Exparte Order to seal up the Lagos property.

The court presided over by Justice Musa granted the Exparte Order on November 24, 2025 to seal and secure the entire property, including the reclaimed land at the back of the property measuring 3,000 square meters.

He also ordered the immediate stoppage of all construction works, activities, actions, or steps on the said property while ensuring that no person, authority, or entity howsoever described is permitted access to or entry upon the property pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit pending before the court.

Following the order of the court which was supposed to have been vacated, having elapsed, on December 30, 2025,, all the occupants of the property and their workers were forcefully chased out of their business premises and the property was sealed up by people who introduced themselves as officers of the FCT High Court, from Abuja.

All efforts by the various business owners to explain to the FCT Court officials that their business premises is different from the 3,000square meters of the reclaimed land upon which the plaintiff claim is predicated, met stiff resistance as they were forcefully pushed out of the premises without being allowed any opportunity to remove anything from there.

The institution of this case in FCT Abuja and the grant of the Exparte Order suggests a grand and calculated scheme orchestrated to cause mischief and hardship on the Landlord of the Premises and the innocent occupants who have been deprived of access to their business premises. The Business owners are not parties to the alleged agreement between Mr. Henry Ugonna Orabuchi, and Mr. Elvis Emecheta, over the 3,000 square meters of the reclaimed land behind their business premises and are not parties to the fundamental rights enforcement suit.