A Federal High Court in Kano has ordered the Kano State Government to pay the Incorporated Trustees of Eid Grand Shop Owners N30 billion as compensation for the unlawful demolition of their properties.
The court ruled that the state government carried out the demolition exercise without recourse to the law.
It was reported how the Kano State governor, Abba Yusuf, ordered the demolition of certain properties across Kano Metropolis, which he claimed the immediate past government sold illegally.
Some of the properties demolished include a three-storey building with 90 shops on a race course at the Nasarawa GRA. Daula Hotel is a three-star hotel reconstructed by the Ganduje administration under a Private Public Partnership arrangement.
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The government also demolished another structure, at Hajj Camp, sold to private individuals by the immediate past administration of the state and shops erected in parts of the Kofar Mata, Eid prayer ground.
The owners of the demolished properties sued the Kano government over the demolition.
Some of the traders under the umbrella of the Incorporated Trustees of ‘Massallacin Eid Shop Owners’ challenged the demolition at the Federal High Court.
The judge, Samuel Amobeda, ordered the government to pay the traders N30 billion as compensation for the illegal demolition of their properties.
The judge said the action of the Kano State Government against the applicants was barbaric and unconstitutional.
Delivering the judgement in a suit no FHC/KN/CS/208/2023 between 56 numbers of applicants on behalf of all members of the Masallacin Eid shop owners and Traders Association, the judge said the judgement favoured the applicants.
He said it was against the respondents which include: the Kano state government, KNUPDA, Attorney General, Kano state, Nigeria Police, Assistant Inspector General of Police Zone 1, Kano, Commissioner of Police Kano, Kano state, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corpse, Commandant, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corpse, Kano State Command.
Mr Amobeda fined the respondents N10 billion in damages for the violation of the applicants’ respective fundamental rights to life, dignity of the human person and ownership of property and N20 billion for the highhandedness, impunity, and lawlessness during the demolition
“That, given the established facts and circumstances of this case, the invocation of the investigative powers of the first respondent (kano state government) against the Applicants, having not been based upon any established allegation or report of crime, is unlawful, illegal, null and void ab initio (from the beginning) and therefore constitutes a likely violation of the Applicants’ fundamental rights to personal liberty guaranteed and protected under section 35(1) of the constitution of Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).
“That, the act of the first, (kano state government) second and third respondents, aided by the personnel of the fourth to eighth respondents invading the applicants’ business premises to forcefully acquire same, and vandalising and demolish same without due process of law is tantamount to a flagrant violation of the Applicants’ right to property, right to life cum livelihood and the right to dignity of the human person and thus unconstitutional and wrongful.
“That the first to third respondents, (Kano State government, Kano State Urban Planning and Development Authority (KNUPDA) Attorney General, Kano) shall jointly pay to the Applicants, the sum of N10 billion as general damages for the violation of the Applicants’ respective fundamental rights to life, dignity of the human person and ownership of property guaranteed and protected by section 33, 34, 43, and 44 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. 1999 (as amended).
“That, punitive and exemplary damages of N20 billion is awarded against the first, second and third respondents jointly for the highhandedness, impunity, and lawlessness with which they carried out their flagrant and wanton violation of the Applicants’ fundamental rights stated above,” the judge ruled on Friday.
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