Court dismisses suit against Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road project

The Federal High Court in Lagos has dismissed a suit against the construction of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal road project.

The suit was filed by some indigenes of the Okun-Ajah community and other concerned property owners at Okun-Ajah in Eti-Osa Local Government Area, Lagos State, who sought that the project be stopped.

The plaintiff representing the Okun-Ajah community are Chief Saheed Olukosi (Akogun of Okun-Ajah Community), Noibi Issa Afolayan, Yussuf Odunuga Sulaiman, Olufemi Fasehun and Adeola Tokunbo, the defendants are the Minister, Dr Dave Umahi; Olukorede Keisha; Federal Ministry of Works & Housing; Attorney-General of Lagos State; Commissioner for Waterfront Infrastructure Development; Surveyor-General of Lagos State; General Manager, Lagos State Physical Planning Permit Authority; General Manager, Lagos State Building Control Agency and Hitech Construction Limited.

But Justice Akintayo Aluko has ruled that the suit, marked FHC/L/CS/1488/2024, lacked jurisdiction.

In their bid to stop the project, the plaintiffs, through their lawyers, A.O. Ajiboye and E. C. Okorie, sought “An order to set aside acts of encroachment on their landed properties, setting aside designs, plans of Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road on their parcels of land.

The plaintiff sought “An order restraining the first to the third and ninth defendants from encroaching, trespassing and diverting the construction of the Lagos — Calabar Coastal Road into their land.”

In addition to their prayers, they also sought damages for acts of trespassing on the land in dispute.

However, the defendants urged the court to throw out the suit for lack of jurisdiction.

In their separate preliminary objections, the first, second, third and ninth defendants specifically asked the court to dismiss the suit, citing seven grounds for their objections.