A retired Major-General, Abdul Rauf Tijjani, on Tuesday dragged the Lagos State government and seven others before a Federal High Court in Abuja, challenging the alleged injustice perpetrated against him by officials of the state.
The plaintiff is specifically challenging the alleged sabotage of the execution of a court judgment which returned his landed property in Lagos State to him after a period of unlawful seizure.
In a fundamental human rights suit instituted in Abuja, the former army general prayed Justice Inyang Ekwo to order Lagos State government and its governor to pay him a cumulative compensation of N8bn as damages for alleged injustice suffered in the hands of Lagos officials.
In the suit with number FHC/ABJ/CS/690/2020, the plaintiff is also asking the judge to compel the National Judicial Council (NJC) to pay another sum of N100m for alleged misconduct of a Federal High Court judge, Justice A. O. Faji, during the hearing of his matter.
In addition, the plaintiff also asked the court for an order for the trial of Justice Faji for allegedly perverting the course of justice in his case.
Tijjani is also praying the court to compel the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) to de-robe Kasheem Adeniji of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and further de-bar him for an alleged act of misconduct.
In a 19-paragraph affidavit in support of the suit, the plaintiff averred that a former Attorney General of Lagos State, Abdulraheem Ade Ipaye, now Deputy Chief of Staff to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, allegedly coveted his landed properties in Shasha-Akonwonjo Area in Alimosho area of Lagos State in his personal gain.
He said that as a result, he approached the high court and got judgment in his favour on January 31, 2014.
He, however, said that the judgment could not be executed because of the alleged sabotage on the part of Lagos State officials.
The plaintiff claimed that his case got worse when his personal lawyer, Kasheem Adeniji (SAN), was appointed Attorney General of Lagos State and subsequently became an interested party in the matter.
The plaintiff further averred that following the appointment of Adeniji as Lagos Attorney General, he disengaged with his law firm, adding that the AG turned against him by frustrating his case.
When the matter was mentioned on Tuesday, Justice Ekwo fixed July 13 for hearing and ordered service of the processes on all the respondents.
The respondents are the NJC, Federal High Court, Nigerian Bar Association, Justice Faji, Adeniji (SAN), Attorney General of the Federation, Lagos government, and the governor of Lagos.
