Shop owners and traders at the demolished Oyinlola Olorunda Market, FESTAC Town have asked the Ikeja High Court in Lagos to stop government officials from further trespass on the property.
They prayed the court for an interlocutory injunction restraining Amuwo Odofin Local Government Council and the Lagos State Government from, among others, “entering, surveying, evacuating, digging up, laying any foundation, constructing or redeveloping all the parcel of lands of the claimants” at the market, pending the determination of the suit.
The suit, marked, ID/9827/LMW/2020, was filed by five claimants: Mr A. Akinnikawe; Abebi Shogbesan; Tijani Adisa (for themselves and on behalf of allottees/owners of the market); Amalgamated Trading Co. Ltd and Mrs Stella Taiwo Cookey (Iyaloja of Olorunda Oyinlola Market).
Amuwo Odofin Local Government Council, the Federal Housing Authority, and the Lagos State Government are the three defendants/respondents.
The claimants/applicants made the prayer in a December 29 motion on notice filed through their team of counsel, including Chief Ike Onyefulu, and Adesina Ogunlana.
They supported their prayer with a 27-page affidavit in support of the motion, deposed to by Akinnikawe, an owner of one of the “over 2000 shops”.
They averred that buildings, including shops, belonging to traders in the market, were demolished by officials of the Amuwo-Odofin Local Government protected by armed policemen on December 12, without prior notice to the market leaders and traders.
According to them, no fewer than 5,000 traders were affected.
No date has been fixed for hearing of the motion.
The traders protested in front of the Ikeja High Court yesterday before their lawyers filed the application.