Fight between 85-yearold landlord, Lebanese firm over Lagos property gets messier

The home on 33 Balogun Avenue, Lagos, is in dispute. There are two claimants. When the Dr. Charles Oladeinde Williams’ household wants their asset handed back to them, the Lebanese agency, which supposedly leased it, statements the residence experienced prolonged been offered to them. Taiwo Hassan, who has been next the disagreement, experiences

For the former Main Clinical Director of Unity Healthcare facility, Lagos, Dr. Charles Oladeinde Williams, it is been a tug-of-war attempting to reclaim his inheritance. His father, late Clarence Olatunde Williams, inherited the assets with his siblings from their have father, James Wilson. His father, and his uncle, Charles Adeyinka Wilson, as perfectly as his aunts, Florence Aduke Bajomo (Nee Williams) and Adenike Wilson, experienced leased the residence to Mohammed El-Khalil and many others in 1953.

The lease was for 50 a long time. And the 10-storey constructing was on 3/5, Bankole Road, Lagos, at that time. The road experienced since been rearranged and it’s now on 33 Balogun Avenue. Williams Snr. and his siblings experienced declared themselves house owners of the aforementioned home by inheritance underneath indigenous legislation and customs. But in 1953, they granted a 50-calendar year lease of the assets to Messrs Mohammed El-Khalil and Ramiz Moukarim.

However, a very little in excess of a few many years (1956) following the execution of the 1953 lease, Moukarim and El-Khalil allegedly claimed to have out rightly obtained the property from Williams’ father and his siblings the similar brothers and sisters who designed the 1952 Declaration and signed the 1953 lease. But Williams has preserved that he had no knowledge of the purported sale of the assets, insisting that the Lebanese had been occupying the developing beneath the 1953 lease.

At the expiration of the lease on March 31, 2003, the Lebanese, Williams reported, refused to vacate the home, prompting him to formally notify them of the expiration of the lease, although at the similar time requesting them to vacate the house. Williams reported: “We approached the Lebanese to get back our residence, but their response was disheartening. Rather of complying, they claimed that the residence experienced been bought to their progenitor three several years into the lease settlement. This, they mentioned, was perfected in 1956.

They drew our notice to the 1956 Deed of Transfer underneath which they claimed the home was offered to them.” Anxious by the convert of activities, the 85-calendar year-previous Williams conducted a lookup at the lands Registry, Alausa, Ikeja, but what he observed out was additional confounding. It was found out, according to him, that the Deed of Transfer of title was in truth registered by the Lebanese as the rightful owners of the residence, barely 3 a long time right after the graduation of the 50-12 months lease by the Williams’ loved ones.

Not content with what they noticed, the Williams went to acquire a duplicate of the 1956 Deed of Transfer and forwarded identical to the Forensic Science Laboratory of the Nigerian Police, Alagbon, Lagos, for further more scrutiny and to confirm the authenticity of the signatures of his father and his father’s siblings and when compared with individuals on the 1953 lease. Following the examination of the forensic report, the Law enforcement concluded that the signatures on the 1956 meant Deed of Transfer of title ended up completely distinct from people on the 1952 declaration and the 1953 Deed of Lease.

They subsequently declared that the 1956 Deed of Transfer was cast. Yet another seeming abnormality that caught Williams’ eyes was the failure of the 1956 Deed of Transfer to terminate or even make any type of reference to the 1953 Deed of Lease, which ordinarily should to have been the scenario.

It was also noticed that the Lebanese inadvertently misrepresented or wrongly described Williams’ aunt, Adenike Wilson, as “Anike Wilson” in the purported 1956 Deed of Transfer even with the point that in the 1952 Declaration and 1953 Lease, the exact aunt was constantly described as Adenike Wilson. It was the mix of the Police results and these contradictions that prompted Williams to strategy the Substantial Court docket of Lagos Condition to search for to void it and to recuperate their family’s assets.

On March 8, 2012, the family members commenced a fit at the Significant Courtroom of Lagos Condition, towards El-Khalil & Sons Qualities Constrained and 3 other folks. They integrated the individual reps of the Estate of Mohammed El-Khalil, personalized representatives of the Estate of Ramiz Moukarim and the Registrar of Titles, Lands Registry of Lagos Point out as defendants. Williams experienced approached the courtroom trying to get repossession of the house. The legal battle spanned 7 several years prior to the courtroom delivered its judgement in the go well with on December, 6, 2019, in favour of Williams and his relatives.

A look at the summary of the track record on which the authorized fight was fought as revealed in a court docket doc produced out there to this newspaper indicated that Williams is a descendant of one particular James Wilson, the authentic owner of the residence in dispute. By the way, the Lebanese firm, in accordance to Williams, had refused to hand over the property to him and his loved ones and has due to the fact been discouraging the court buy on the justification that they experienced appealed the judgement at the Court of Attractiveness, Lagos.

At the hearing of the match, equally Williams and the Lebanese referred to as for forensic proof in respect of the authenticity or usually of the signatures on the 1956 Deed of Transfer as as opposed to the signatures on the 1952 Declaration and the 1953 Deed of Lease. But in a fairly bizarre twist, the forensic physician called by the defendants testified below crossexamination prior to the demo court that the signatures on the Deed of Transfer have been so distinctive from the signatures on the 1953 Lease “that there was no basis for any comparison between the two sets of signatures.” Following the judgement, the defendants filed an appeal at the Court of Attraction, Lagos Division, trying to find to overturn the ruling. They also applied for a stay of execution of the judgement of the trial courtroom pending the consequence of that attraction.

Nevertheless, at the hearing of the application for stay of execution, the defendants educated the demo courtroom that they ended up organized to deposit a lender promise with the registrar of the demo court docket for the judgement sum pending the outcome of their attractiveness.

Incidentally, Williams did not oppose the defendants’ proposal that a bank assurance should be deposited in the account of the registrar of the courtroom. He just included a even more problem that the management of the assets really should be vested in a trustworthy estate management company, when the appeal is pending right before the Courtroom of Attractiveness. Curiously and notably, the defendants did not also object to or contest this extra affliction. In its ruling shipped on February 17, the demo courtroom, among the other things, granted a conditional keep in line with the proposals of the functions. The decide made an order to the impact that the judgement sum and curiosity accruing on it up until the judgement should be deposited within just seven days by using a financial institution draft in the title of the Main Registrar of the Significant Courtroom of Lagos Condition.

He also said that the management of the assets need to be vested in a reputable estate organization to be appointed by the Chief Registrar of the Courtroom. However, the defendants, it was further more learnt, introduced a next attraction, this time, versus the purchase of conditional keep granted by the demo court practically on the defendants’ have phrases.

The defendants’ counsel, Chief Tunde Olojo of Elubode B. Omoboriowo Esq, Shinkafi, Kusamotu, Olojo & Co, on December 9, 2019, despatched a detect with Attraction No: Fit No: LD/331/2012 to the Court docket of Attraction, Lagos, a duplicate of which is in possession of Saturday Telegraph. They, by their legal professionals, explained they were being dissatisfied with the final decision of the Substantial Court of Lagos State, contained in the judgement by Justice Candide-Johnson, shipped on December 6, 2019.

According to Counsel to Khalil: “The uncovered trial judge erred in legislation when he held that 1st Respondent- Dr. C.O Williams has the locus standi to institute the motion for and on behalf of the alleged deceased predecessors-in-title. The 1st respondent during the trial did not deliver any death certificate to establish the demise of any of his alleged deceased predecessors-in-title. In the Detect of Attractiveness, the 1st respondent did not also direct evidence of any probate/letter of administration as the executor/beneficiary of the estate of any of his alleged deceased predecessors-in-title. “Also, the 1st respondent did not tender any letter of Administration to demonstrate that the 3rd Appellant is a beneficiary of the estates of both equally 1st and 2nd Appellant. So, the discovered trial judge erred in law when he held that the 1st respondent has proven a situation of forgery against the 1st -3rd Appellants and that the doctrine of genuineness did not avail them.” In yet another twist nonetheless, Williams petitioned the Federal Governing administration through the Business of the Inspector General of Law enforcement (IGP). He specifically requested the IGP, Mohammad Adamu, to save him in the hands of Lebanese descendants of El-Khalil, whom, he said, have refused to release his family’s residence following the expiration of their 50-yr-old lease agreement. The petition also addresses that of forgery, fraudulent conversion of property and obtaining by power pretence. In the petition dated August 28, and duly signed by him, a copy of which was created available to Saturday Telegraph, showed that he was proclaiming that the enterprise of M. El-Khalil & Sons Qualities Constrained forged a Deed of Transfer dated December 2, 1956, and has been boasting ownership of and occupying his family’s residence due to the fact then dependent on the solid titled document. Williams equally claimed that the enterprise, M. El-Khalil & Sons Qualities Constrained, now managed by Francis Uzom of Frank Harden Confined and Obinna Chima had relied on bogus claim of possession of the property to pocket large money jogging into billions of naira in rents selection from unsuspecting tenants at the house. “They have been trying to offer the explained residence primarily based on the reported solid title documents,” he further alleged. He said that his endeavours to alert the occupants of the assets and the typical general public, specifically potential property purchasers about the assert of possession by M. El-Khalil & Sons Houses Limited, have led to several threats of dying directed at him by officers of the reported enterprise. While responding to the weighty allegations, the Lebanese talking through their attorney, Elubode B. Omoboriowo Esq of Elubode B. Omoboriowo Esq, Shinkafi and Kusamotu Olojo & Co, dismissed the death statements allegation in his job interview with our reporter. According to him, “This is a lie that was nicely fabricated. In simple fact, the allegation is not only a lie, but also untrue and baseless. It is a finish lie from the air.” Omoboriowo did not only rubbish Williams’ claims on residence forgery, but insisted that, “It is a fabricated lies that cannot be established by him at the legislation courtroom due to the fact M. El-Khalil & Sons Properties Minimal is a business and if he is insisting that a company solid a certificate like he claimed, so why did not he occur out and point out a director (s) or team of the corporation that did it in M. El-Khalil & SONS Qualities Restricted and the so-named director or employees will arrive out publicly to accept or deny that.” The law firm discussed that the claimant has no proof of evidence to that impact as he’s utilizing the menace to daily life as a ploy to achieve sympathy following his customers transfer to attractiveness the Large Court of Lagos Judgement. “There is no iota of truth of the matter in that,” he added. Omoboriowo explained to our reporter that the circumstance is previously in the Courtroom of Appeal and that it is now slated for listening to on December 14. “We are all set to take it up to the Supreme Court docket since our purchasers have a strong circumstance to upturn the judgement in their favour following the slender victory that Williams is having fun with about the Significant Courtroom judgement that gave him one of the lands on the house.” On the coming December 14, Appeal hearing, Omoboriowo explained: “My clientele have a powerful scenario versus him to upturn the judgement as a subject of fact. That is why we are treading the line of professionalism, the line of the regulation and not resorting to press, law enforcement and below and there. He’s the 1 that goes about chatting as outdated as he is. We are heading to upturn it by the grace of God. The scenario is nonetheless going to the Supreme Court and we are heading to overturn the initial judgement it is just a slim victory he has now.” Not too long ago, Williams has also complained of other alleged underhand dealings by the Lebanese. For occasion, throughout the interval when the case was right before the demo court docket, he claimed, the defendants, below the guise of a bogus settlement initiative, delayed the hearing of the circumstance for a significant size of time. He also claimed that the Lebanese at some place re-configured the house to accommodate extra tenants from whom rents operating into hundreds of tens of millions have been collected by the defendants. Right after the defendants ended up finished with the configuration of the property and had permit out the newly additional spaces to tenants, all pretences towards amicable settlement of the dispute with Williams have been completed absent with by them as they returned to announce to the demo court that the settlement initiative unsuccessful. Once more, even though their two appeals had been pending just before the Courtroom of Enchantment, the defendants allegedly began boasting to the tenants in the setting up and the individuals in the rapid ecosystem that they ended up geared up to preserve the circumstance in court indefinitely through the attraction approach. They even pointed to the notoriously slow judicial process in the nation, to generate house their stage, Williams alleged. “They claimed that given my superior age, it is almost impossible for me to see the close of the situation in my life time,” he further told our reporter. But the threats and wishes of loss of life notwithstanding, Williams thinks that the similar Almighty God, who kept him alive during the duration of the scenario at the demo courtroom, would sustain him as a result of the charm processes until his last vindication by the Court of Appeal, and if need be, the Supreme Courtroom. Williams reported that he was steadfast in his perception that although the wheels of justice may perhaps convert little by little, they do, in point, switch exceedingly high-quality, declaring that his religion in God and the judicial technique experienced never been much better. Omoboriowo nevertheless, described that his clients’ firm has been in possession and profession of the identical home due to the fact 1966 with no any challenge or disturbance from Williams’ alleged predecessors’ intitle or the Claimant. He insisted that his enterprise carried out a normal restore in the tune of N150 million for the trespass and lawful execution carried out by the Claimant and/or his brokers on the afflicted property in December 2009. According to him, the Claimant lacks the locus standi to institute or commence any scenario towards them in that he is not a get together to any of the transactions (title documents) when signing the deed of agreement in 1953 was carried out. Assistant home manager of M. El-Khalil & Sons (attributes) Constrained, Obinna Chima, on his aspect explained that there is very little in any of the paperwork placed ahead of the Court docket by Williams from whom the Court docket could come across or infer any partnership or link among the Claimant and his alleged predecessors-in-title. This, the Lebanese’ legal professionals, agreed with, when they stated that this action is statute barred in that the trigger of motion which is demanding the authenticity of the Deed of transfer of Freehold dated November 2, 1956, arose 55 decades ago. The realized lawyer argued that this suit amounts to an abuse of the process of the Court in that the notices to stop and notice of owner’s intent to apply to get better possession on which this motion is launched were being purportedly served throughout the pendency of fit No LD/2144/05 (Dr. C.O. Williams vs M. El-Khalil & ORS) in which the stated fit, functions and the topic issue are the exact same as in the instant match and also a See of Attractiveness filed by the Claimant which has not been withdrawn. Even so, a stop by to the assets in query by our reporter, showed that it is a 10-storey creating with store house ranging from N3 million to N15 million per annum with traders of all types occupying the property. The traders promote largely sneakers, luggage, leather, clothes, jewelry equipment, and occupy every ground of the making.

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