Ayomide Awe
Six landowners and a company have petitioned the Ogun State Surveyor-General, urging the office not to register any survey plan, Certificate of Occupancy or other title documents in favour of a Chinese-linked firm, Zena Global Prestige Limited, over a disputed 20.005-acre parcel of land in Makun, Sagamu, pending the determination of a suit before the Ogun State High Court.
PLATFORM TIMES gathered that the petition was submitted on August 6, 2026, barely hours after the claimants instituted Suit No. HCS/356/2026 before the Ogun State High Court sitting in Sagamu, seeking judicial determination of the ownership of the land.
The claimants are Waheed Olajide Salami, Adeoye Adetola Efuwape, Wilson Olasunkanmi Sofola, Taiwo Abiodun Ogunse, Bello Olarewaju Jamiu and Zarrat Investment Ventures Limited.
In a petition signed by their counsel, David Olaniyi Efuwape, of David Olaniyi Efuwape & Co. (Proverb Chambers), the claimants warned the Surveyor-General against processing or approving any land documentation relating to the property in favour of Zena Global Prestige Limited or any other party while the matter remains before the court.
According to the petition, the disputed land is located off the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway at Onile-Owo Village, Makun, Sagamu, and is already the subject of pending litigation, with an application for an interlocutory injunction equally before the court.
The solicitors stated, “We hereby object and place your office on notice that any registration, approval or issuance of any survey plan, Certificate of Occupancy or title document over the said land to Zena Global Prestige Limited or any other person will be in bad faith and contempt of court.
“We shall hold your office liable for any loss arising therefrom.”
Attached to the petition were copies of the writ of summons, motion for interlocutory injunction and the survey plan covering the land.
The claimants maintained that they are the lawful owners and persons in possession of the 20.005-acre property, explaining that they initially leased the land in 2021 before purchasing it outright from members of the Ogunokanra and Onile-Owo families through 15 separate land purchase agreements executed between 2025 and 2026.
They said the property is covered by Survey Plan No. OG/1923/2026/213, dated May 12, 2026.
According to the claimants, they had carried out licensed commercial sand excavation on the land since 2021 with the consent of the original landowning families before acquiring full ownership.
They, however, alleged that Zena Global Prestige Limited recently approached the Surveyor-General’s office to process and register a survey plan over the same land despite the pending dispute.
In the substantive suit, the claimants are asking the court to declare them as the lawful holders of the statutory right of occupancy and owners of the disputed property.
They are also seeking a declaration that the defendant’s alleged entry into the land on July 31, 2026, accompanied by armed thugs and bulldozers, amounted to trespass.
The plaintiffs further prayed the court for a perpetual injunction restraining the company, its agents and representatives from entering or interfering with the property, as well as a mandatory injunction compelling it to restore the land to its original state.
In addition, they are claiming ₦50 million in special and general damages.
The breakdown of the claims includes ₦5.6 million for the alleged destruction of 80 truckloads of excavated sand stockpiled on the site, ₦2.5 million for alleged business losses recorded between July 31 and August 4, 2026, ₦8 million as the estimated cost of restoring the land, and ₦33.9 million as general damages for the alleged trespass, continuing business losses and threats to life.
The claimants also filed a motion on notice seeking an interlocutory injunction restraining Zena Global Prestige Limited, its directors, agents or privies from entering, excavating, bulldozing, selling, allocating or otherwise dealing with the disputed land pending the determination of the substantive suit.
In an affidavit supporting the application, they alleged that the company trespassed on the property, destroyed sand stockpiles valued at ₦5.6 million, deployed armed thugs popularly known as Ajagungbale to the site and continued altering the nature of the land.
They argued that unless restrained by the court, the defendant’s continued activities could defeat the purpose of the suit and cause irreversible damage that monetary compensation alone would not adequately remedy.
As of the time of filing this report, there was no indication that Zena Global Prestige Limited had entered an appearance or filed any response to the suit before the High Court.
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