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CaseLaw

ELF Petroleum V. Umah (2018) CLR 1(h) (SC)

Judgement delivered on January 19, 2018

Brief

  • Representative capacity
  • Judicial discretion
  • General damages
  • Right to own property as entrenched in Constitution
  • Constitution – Supremacy over all other laws
  • Right of Government to compulsorily acquire property
  • Acquisition of land
  • Ownership and disposal of land
  • Section 40(1) 1979 constitution
  • Section 44(1) 1999 Constitution
  • Section 44(1) (a) of the 1999 Constitution
  • Section 44(1) (b) of the 1999 Constitution
  • Sections 1(1) of the 1979 Constitution
  • Section 1(3) of the 1979 Constitution
  • Section 28(1) of the Land Use Act 1990
  • Section 28(3) of the Land Use Act 1990
  • Section 28(3)(b) of the Land Use Act 1990
  • Section 28(2) of the Land Use Act 1990
  • Section 87(10) of the Electoral Act 2010
  • Order 8 Rule 2(2) of the Rules of the Supreme Court 1999
  • Petroleum Act, 1990
  • Oil Pipelines Act, 1990

Facts

The Appellant herein was the Defendant in Suit No. FHC/PH/CS/152/97 filed at the Federal High Court, Port Harcourt in Rivers State. The Respondents herein as Plaintiffs in the trial court and Respondents also in the court below for themselves and on behalf of the members of the 5 (five villages that constitute the Obite Community in Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni LGA of Rivers State of Nigeria initiated the aforesaid suit (supra) against the appellant as defendant therein and claiming the following reliefs:

  • a
    The sum of N2,500,000,000.00 (Two Billion, Five Hundred Million Naira) only being and representing compensation for the acquisition of the plaintiffs communities, vast area of land measuring approximately 28,684 hectares (about 286.840 square meters) by the Defendant company for the establishment of a GAS PLANT at OBITE COMMUNITY in the Ogba/Egbema/Ndomi Local Government Area of Rivers State of Nigeria.
  • b
    That the Defendant Company implements the contents of the Plaintiffs' Bill of demand dated September 15th 1996 already pleaded in paragraph 6 of the Statement of claim.
  • c
    That the Defendant company be committed in a written undertaking that it would always offer gainful employment opportunities to the indigenes of the five (5) smaller communities (villages that constitute the overall OBITE larger Community."

That the Defendant company be committed in a written undertaking that it would always offer gainful employment opportunities to the indigenes of the five (5) smaller communities (villages that constitute the overall OBITE larger Community."

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