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Onitsha Sports Club Wins Injunction Against Land Encroachment

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By Chuks Eke

Onitsha, Anambra State – The Onitsha Sports Club has achieved a temporary victory in its ongoing land dispute with the Ekwerekwu family of Okposieke kindred.

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Justice Sylvester Odili of High Court No. 4, Onitsha Judicial Division, issued an interlocutory injunction prohibiting the Ekwerekwu family from further encroaching or demolishing structures on the Sports Club’s property.

The Ekwerekwu family claims ownership of the land, claiming that their ancestors granted colonial masters a 99-year lease that has since expired.

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They have allegedly used bulldozers on two or three occasions in 2024 to demolish structures on the land, claiming it as their ancestral property.

The Onitsha Sports Club vehemently denies this claim, presenting a Certificate of Occupancy dated October 20, 1997, as proof of their ownership.

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The Sports Club, represented by Incorporated Trustees Chief Daniel Okafor (President), Chief Tobechi Ejezie (Past President), and Chief Pius Nweke, filed a motion (No. 0/285M/2024) seeking the injunction and demanding the restoration of damaged structures.

They estimate the damage caused by the Ekwerekwu family’s actions to be approximately N1.05 billion, with a total value of structures on the land estimated at N3 billion. Their legal team, led by Kpajie Nnamdi Ibegbu SAN, argued convincingly for the injunction.

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While Justice Odili granted the injunction preventing further encroachment and demolition pending the hearing of the substantive suit, he declined the club’s request for a  mandatory injunction ordering the restoration of damaged properties.

He stated that this aspect would be addressed within the substantive suit.

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The court has scheduled an accelerated hearing for the substantive suit, setting hearing dates for January 31st, February 5th, 7th, 12th, 19th, and March 5th, 2024.

The defendants, Harold Ekwerekwu, Valentine Ekwerekwu, Nonso Ekwerekwu, Obi Ekwerekwu, Igweze Ekwerekwu, and Benjamin Ekwerekwu, representing the Ekwerekwu family, are restrained from further actions until the matter is resolved.

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The Onitsha Sports Club, described as an important social and recreational hub for senior citizens in the area, expressed relief at the court’s decision and pledged to cooperate fully with the court process.

The outcome of the substantive suit will determine the final ownership of the land.

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