Violation Of Court Order: AMCON’s Conduct Should Be Reviewed, Victory Park Estate Owners Tell FG

Following the seizure of some plots of land within Victory Park Estate, Igbokushu in Lekki by the Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), the estate owners association has urged the Federal government as well as the Lagos state government to wade into the matter.

This is even as they alleged that AMCON violated court orders by selling the disputed plots and called for a review of their conduct while adding that the association runs the risk of losing their life savings.

Speaking to journalists during a press conference organised by the Association of Victory Park Estate Bare-land Owners in Lagos on Tuesday, the Managing Partner, Pistis Partners law firm, Mayowa Owolabi, representing some of the affected members of the association, revealed that the association acquired several plots of land within the estate from a company called Knight Rook Limited through an affliated company called Grant properties Limited in 2002.

Owolabi noted that the claimants upon acquiring the land, proceeded to register the title deeds at the land registry, paid all registrations fees and statutory charges and thereafter procured Governor’s consent.

According to him, a certain Mr Lanre Olaoluwa in 2017, placed a signage on the perimeter fence around the estate indicating that AMCON was entitled to take possession of some plots of land within the estate based on the orders of the Federal High Court made on the 16th June, 2016 in Suit No: FHC/AB/CS/69/2016 – AMCON v Havilah Villas Limited & 10 Ors and Suit No: FHC/L/CS/744/2017- AMCON v Knight Rook Limited & 5 Ors.

“Following an investigation, our members discovered that the said Mr Lanre Olaoluwa was purportedly appointed by AMCON as the Receiver/Manager of Knight Rook Limited and Grant Properties Limited, to take over both companies and their assets due to their indebtedness to some banks as the debts has been assigned to AMCON.

“However, on further investigations conducted by our members, the referenced judgement did not confer ownership of their respective plots of land on AMCON, the said judgement which stated that one hectare was to be seized and not 49 hectares (all the plots of land) within the estate. Members of the association (about 100 affected persons) had filed several suits right from 2016 which are still pending before the High Court of Lagos state but we discovered that notwithstanding the pending suits, someone (thought to be AMCON) continues to sell the disputed plots and is actively encouraging the persons that he purportedly sold the plots to carry out construction work on the plots”.

This, Owolabi said, is carried out in violation of the doctrine of pending legal action and subsisting orders of injunction while adding that the action taken by AMCON is detrimental to the members of the association’s life savings.

“We are calling on the Federal Government, Lagos State government to review AMCON’s conduct by protecting the interests of Nigerians. AMCON has to answer pertinent questions, they should allow the court to work because they are obliged to conduct its affairs in accordance with the tenets of the law and not seen taking steps that clearly amounts to flagrant disregard for court orders and due process,” he said.