A High Court of Imo State presided over by Justice C. N. Okereke has granted the Oparaugo Ajoku Family leave to serve the writ of summons and all other processes to a former aide of the Imo State Governor, Chinasa Nwaneri by substituted means.
It was gathered that Nwaneri has continuously evaded service of the court processes in the matter concerning the alleged forceful takeover of the land known as Nkporo Farmland by the state government.
Also joined in Suit No: HOW/787/2023 as defendants are Governor of Imo State, Attorney General of the state, Commissioner for Lands in the state and Director, Ministry of Lands, Survey and Urban Planning.
The family is seeking among other reliefs that it is entitled to statutory right of occupancy over the land being the bonafide owner by reason of customary inheritance of Owere Nchi Is people.
The family is also seeking a declaration of the court that the defendants cannot take over the land without payment of compensation and that the trespass into the land by the first to fourth defendants at the instigation of the fifth defendant, Chinasa Nwaneri was illegal and unlawful.
The Ajoku family equally urged the court to nullify any sale or purported sale of the land by the defendants.
The family further urged the court to award to it N500million being general damages for trespass by the defendants and to issue an injunction restraining the defendants, their agents, privies or any one claiming through them from further trespassing into the family land.
