Appeal Court, 8th Nov.,
1941
Appeal from judgment of Supreme
Court.
pg154
Claim. to set aside sale of land
attached under writ of Fi Fa and
sold by public auction-Question
of tenure--Claim to title based
on long and undisturbed
occupation.
The land situated at Ebute .Metta
and forming part of the area
granted in 1868 for use of the
Egba Refugees was attached under
a writ of
Fi Fa
issued out of the Supreme Court
and it was not shown that the
father of the plaintiffs was the
actual holder of a " Glover
Ticket" in respect of the plot
or what the tenure was.
The Court following previous
decisions agreed with the trial
Judge that it would be
inequitable to disturb an
occupation which had not been
challenged for eighty years.
Appeal dismissed.
Akpan Awo v. Cookey Gam
2 N.L.R. ]00 followed.
P.
Oddie
for Appellant.
E. J. Alex Taylor
and
.T.
E. David
for Respondents.
The following joint judgment was
delivered:-
RAKER, BROOKE,
AND JEFFREYS, JJ.
This is a claim by the
plaintiffs to have set aside the
sale of a piece of land situated
at Ebute Metta forming part of
the area granted to the Governor
in 1868 for the use of the Egba
refugees. The land was attached
under a writ of
Fieri Facias
issued out of the Supreme Court
on a judgment given in Suit No.
333 of 1931 as the property of
the Oloto family, and sold by
public auction. The Court was
not satisfied that the father of
the present plaintiffs was the
actual holder of a ticket in
respect of the plot but found
that the family have been in
actual possession for nearly
eighty years and gave judgment
for the plaintiffs.
The argument of counsel for the
appellant before this Court was
that the land was originally
granted " for the use of " and
that as there had been no
adverse possession (or if any
only since 1929) the land
belonged to the third defendant
and could be attached. The
Statement of Claim says "the
children became seised in fee
simple" but no attempt has been
made to show what the tenure is
though terms were used which
suggested incidents of the
tenure of family land.
pg 155
Counsel for the appellant
stated that customary law
had not been invoked and
that there is in this case
no question of the
reversion. Were it found to
be held as family land the
matter would stop there but
it has not., and counsel'
carefully avoided the
question of tenure. The
confusion existing with
regard to titles to land
within this area is
notorious but the Courts
have for a considerable
number of years upheld
claims to a title based on
long' and undisturbed
occupation therein.
Previous judicial decisions
have recognised the title of
the occupiers of these plots
and we can only agree with
the trial Judge following
the decision in the case of
Akpan Awo v
Cookey Gam page 100 Vol.
2 of the Nigeria Law
Reports, that it. would not
be equitable to disturb an
occupation which has not
been challenged for eighty
years.
The appeal is accordingly
dismissed with costs
assessed at twenty-three
guineas.
